Gold Comes in Many Forms
by LeechLover85
Summary: The Olympics have been known to harbor peace, create lifelong friendships, and even save lives. But at the games I won more than in all my wildest dreams. I won love. A collab fic between PWTF and LeechLover85
1. Parade of Nations

Bella's POV

Bella's POV

I took a deep breath, gripped the long metal shaft in my hands, and shifted the strap on my shoulder. On a cue from the staff member near the opening, I began to walk forward, step by step. All of a sudden my ears heard a loud roar as I stepped into sight of 60,000 screaming people. I heard an echoing voice announce, "The United States of America," followed by, "Les Etats-Unis d'Amérique." English and French. The two official languages of the Olympic Games, I recalled in the back of my mind. As I focused on placing one foot after another carefully on the ground, I reflected on the events that brought me here, to the 2012 Olympic Games in London.

I grew up in the water. My mom moved to Phoenix, Arizona almost immediately after I was born, leaving my father in the miniscule, rainy town of Forks, Washington. At a young age I discovered that I was plagued with an almost crippling clumsiness. I failed at many dance lessons and volleyball games all before I turned five years old. Then, my mom enrolled me in swim lessons at the local pool. As I advanced in lessons I realized that in the water I never fell once. I grasped at that fact and in a few years mastered all four strokes.

When I was eight I joined the swim team to compete and advance my swimming ability. I had to be careful diving off the start blocks, but once I was in the water I sped along faster than any other girls my age. That year I won many races and even advanced to the state finals in the fifty meter breaststroke. I took second.

The next year I was in a more advanced level, competing against both nine and ten-year-olds. I continued the same dominance, and my mom began to realize that I was rather exceptional at swimming. Unbeknownst to me, she researched different training facilities and coaches, hoping to help my skill develop so I could compete on the world stage one day.

My mom moved us again, this time to Austin, Texas where she had secured a position for me to train at the Longhorn Aquatics Center, one of the premier facilities for Olympic-level swimmers. While training at the center under head coach Randy Reese, I decided that my strongest stroke was the breaststroke, and we began to focus on that. I trained long and hard, lifting weights and swimming miles in the pool each day. I didn't go to school anymore but instead had a private tutor.

My earlier success continued and I qualified for junior-level worldwide competition for the United States. I swam in the 100 and 200 meter breaststroke races and the breaststroke leg of the 400 medley relay. I regularly finished in the top five in all these races, and my name was already becoming known to the swimming world.

At fifteen I began competing on the world stage with all of the great swimmers. I traveled around the world competing in different meets and even the world championships. I began to set my sights on the Beijing Olympics in 2008.

I trained hard and strong for the next two years and, at seventeen, competed in the U.S. Olympic trials. After swimming harder than ever before, I qualified for two individual races – my two strongest – the 100 meter and 200 meter breaststroke.

I was so excited for my first Olympic games and couldn't wait to compete in the same pool as the most famous swimmers in the entire world, especially Michael Phelps. I had heard he was attempting to win eight gold medals in eight races to top Mark Spitz's record of seven. I was in awe that he could have a serious goal of winning eight gold medals; I would have to work hard to just win one!

Eventually it was two weeks before the Olympic Games and my emotions were over the roof. I was completely excited and nervous and worried and about five-hundred different emotions. But I was ready. It was my time to show the world who Bella Swan was.

However, it was not to be so. That day, the world decided that I shouldn't compete in Beijing. My out-of-the-pool clumsiness took hold, and I fell down the stairs of my house, breaking my leg. The doctors told me I couldn't swim for nearly two months.

I was heartbroken. But, like a good teammate, I headed to Beijing and cheered on all my teammates. I smiled and screamed as Phelps won his eighth gold medal and watched in awe as Dara Torres won a gold medal while in her forties. Yet though it all, I couldn't help but remember and grieve over the fact that it could have been me in that pool. It could have been me standing on that podium and smiling for the whole world.

After returning from Beijing and waiting for my leg to heal, I once again poured my entire self into swimming. I may not have been able to compete this year, but I would be even stronger and faster than before for swimming in London.

I forced my mind out of its memories and once again focused on the present. I gazed around me, noticing all the people cheering and screaming just for us. It was late in the night; the United States was late in the alphabet and thus nearly at the end of the Parade of Nations. Despite the late hour, I was full of energy, and it seemed that the crowd felt the same way. This was a special moment in history. Pieces of these next couple of weeks would be remembered forever.

I was extremely proud to have been chosen as the flag bearer for my country. It was one of the greatest honors I could have received. I also wondered at the team's thinking. Why choose one of the clumsiest athletes in the nation to carry the flag? I couldn't come up with an answer. So I settled for continuing to concentrate on my feet. Left. Right. Left. Right. One step at a time.

After a couple minutes of this, I had reached the other end of the stadium and began to round the curve. I gazed to my left and noticed that U.S. athletes were still entering the stadium. Hundreds of athletes had come, all hoping to fulfill their dreams of winning an Olympic gold medal. The highest honor in all of sports, I sadly noted that most of these athletes would never even reach the podium.

I promised myself that I would not be one of them. I was ready. It was my time to shine, and I knew that I had a serious chance of even winning gold. I decided that I would win a medal for my country, a medal to represent the dreams of every athlete, showing what could be accomplished with simple determination and effort.

I finally took a break from my awe-stuck gazing and dreams to look around me at my close friends. They surrounded me at the very head of the United States Olympic team. My friend Alice walked gracefully to my left, almost dancing in her excitement. She held the hand of her boyfriend Jasper, who walked along calmly despite the pixie pulling his hand around with her dancing walk. I turned my head to the right to look at my friend Rosalie, attracting the attention of many of the males in the stadium with her graceful, strutting gait. She pulled along her fiancé Emmett, who matched her strut with his own powerful swagger.

I focused on each of my friends in turn.

Emmett – the big, bulky weightlifter. Stronger and more powerful than most men in this world, yet as fun and friendly as a giant teddy bear. I had met Emmett through Rosalie after they began dating, and we had hit it off immediately as he swept me up into a big bear hug.

Rosalie – the incomparably gorgeous and graceful diver. Her unusually long form for her sport caused her dives to appear even more impressive. Rose had it all – yet still preferred to fiddle around with cars and have fun with us. We had met at a swimming and diving invitational when we had been warming up at the pool complex at the same time.

Lithe, graceful Alice. Perfectly tine, yet with a strength not noticeable at first glance. The United States' star gymnast. Always dressed to perfection, she loved to give me makeovers and attempt to hide all the damage on my hair from the pool water. Somehow, impossibly, she was always successful. Like Emmett, I had met Alice through Jasper. They had already been dating for years before I met both her and Jasper at the pool.

And finally, Jasper. My fellow swimmer. His tall frame and long limbs rivaled Michael Phelps. Phelps was only swimming in a couple races this year, so Jasper, the rising star, was in the spotlight instead. He would be competing in six races, and it was quite possible that he'd win gold in all of them. Few swimmers were of his caliber and could even dream of beating him.

Even though we were on the Olympic swimming team together, I constantly looked up to him for his incredible strength, talent, and poise.

Alice noticed my wandering eyes and glazed-over expression and called out a warning.

"Watch your feet, Bella!"

I had practically begged her to make sure I didn't get caught up in the moment and trip, to my eternal humiliation. That could be embarrassing to the entire nation. I still didn't know why _I_ was picked to be the flag bearer. Any one of my friends would be a much more obvious choice. They were all much better-looking than me and could walk without tripping, too. Definitely the sort of person that should be the head of the American procession. I couldn't think of any reason why someone would choose me, let alone the majority. I had a sinking feeling that my friends may have pushed votes away from them and onto me. They gave me too much. I wasn't even sure why they chose to be my friends, and then they kept doing things like this on top of that. Putting me ahead, buying me clothes, and more. It was way too much. But I had learned that resistance was futile and had learned to simply be grateful. Complaining just made it worse.

We had nearly finished circling the stadium by now and were about to enter the center field where all the other athletes had gathered. I stopped walking and took out my camera to take some pictures of my own as we waited for the final nation, the United Kingdom, to enter. I knew the cheering, already loud, would reach a deafening level when the home country entered.

I continued taking pictures of the sights around me and also of my friends. I was pulled in for a group picture with Alice and Rose as a small part of my brain distantly recognized the name 'Zimbabwe' being announced. I smiled and stared into the camera. As I blinked the flash out of my eyes, I suddenly heard an excited call, "The United Kingdom!"

As I had predicted, the entire stadium, which had previously been nearly asleep due to the late hour, suddenly woke up with a resounding cheer. The new level of sound remained for longer than that first instant. The sustained noise lasted for the entire time the British team rounded the stadium, a period lasting several minutes.

I couldn't wait for their team to complete the loop and the games to officially begin. I was excited to mingle with all the athletes and talk to these people from all around the world gathered in this one place at this one time. This would only happen one other time at the closing ceremony.

The British team finally joined the rest of us in the center of the stadium and the attention shifted focus to a podium on the outside of the group of athletes. I put away my camera after noting that Emmett had pulled out his video camera. The head of the British Olympic Committee approached the podium. He spoke a few words about how excited he was to host the Olympics in London. After welcoming the athletes, he surrendered the podium to the chair of the International Olympic Committee.

Jacques Rogge reiterated the welcome and encouraged all the athletes to remain healthy and drug-free after all the recent steroid scandals. After a couple of minutes, Rogge concluded and the immortal words were spoken, "Let the games begin!"

A group of representatives from London carried in the Olympic flag. They passed it off to six beefeaters waiting to raise the flag on the pole. With careful precision and not a smile or show of emotion, they attached it to the rope and hoisted the flag as the sweet sounds of the Olympic Anthem filled the stadium.

When the flag reached the top of the pole, the lights dimmed and a spotlight focused on a figure standing at the entrance we had come from earlier in the evening. I could faintly see that the figure was holding a torch in his hand. The Olympic flame had arrived after its journey around the world.

The figure posed for a couple of seconds as the entire stadium flashed from people taking pictures. Then he started to jog around the stadium. About a quarter of the way around he passed the flame to another figure, a woman who passed near where I was standing. I hoped Emmett got a good shot of this.

The flame continued to be ran around the stadium and passed off to new runners at quarterly intervals. Once the flame had traveled the entire distance of the stadium, it was passed off to one final bearer.

I noticed that this bearer had something akin to a heavy-duty backpack on his back. Just as I realized this, the backpack roared to life with a flaming glow. He lifted off the ground as I recognized that he must be wearing a jetpack. I thought this was a very creative way to light the Olympic torch.

The bearer flew upwards and above the stadium towards the modern, artful torch towering above us. The orange flame from the torch in his hand above him contrasted with the blue flames of the jetpack high in the air. The aerial torchbearer reached the torch and hovered next to it before touching the flame to the torch.

It lit up in a sudden, large flame that illuminated the stadium. The torch was lit. The ceremony was over and the games had officially begun. Members of the audience began to filter out of the stadium as athletes began intermingling and talking among each other.

I drifted slightly away from my friends to say hello to other athletes. As I wandered, I heard all types of languages. English, Spanish, French, Italian, Chinese, and many other languages I couldn't identify. I talked briefly with many random athletes that I ran into.

After speaking with a runner from Jamaica, I decided that I had pushed the bounds of my shyness enough for one evening. My swimming races began early into the Olympics, so I couldn't begin depriving myself of sleep already. I began meandering back towards where I had left my friends, hoping to run into them at some point.

As I wandered, I surveyed the crowd for any signs of my friends. Suddenly I thought a flash of coppery hair in the crowd.

NO! Why on earth was he even at the parade? Why did I have to see him of all people?

I attempted to keep walking to find my friends and prayed that I was simply imagining things. I felt like all my happiness and excitement for the evening had been drained out of me.

All at once he was right in front of me. Jasper's biggest competition. The poster boy and hottest celebrity from Britain. Everything I hated in a person rolled into one. And the one person I did not want to meet.

Edward Cullen.


	2. Confrontation

We don't down Twilight!

* * *

BPOV

I attempted to turn and walk away from him, hoping he didn't actually want to talk to me.

But as I spun on my heel, I heard his perfect voice call, "Hey!"

"What do you want?" I practically growled at him.

"As a member of the host nation, I wanted to welcome you to London and hope you enjoy the Olympics." The words sounded like he forced them out of his lips, like they were a mere formality and he was obligated to say them.

"Oh, I'm _so_ glad you could take the time to so graciously and willingly greet me." Massive sarcasm.

The likes of him couldn't be bothered with anyone he didn't deem worthy of gracing his perfect presence. Everything about him was perfect – his body, his hair, his face, his voice. Absolutely everything. And he knew it. And flaunted it.

I actually couldn't even believe he showed up for the opening ceremony. The swimming events began right away. I would have thought that such a poster boy would be too focused on winning to bother coming tonight. Just like he couldn't even be bothered to come to the Beijing Olympics.

I had legitimately broken my leg, preventing me from swimming. In Cullen's case, however, reports suddenly came in right before the Olympics stating that he had grown ill and was not healthy enough to compete. I thought that was total bullshit. He was probably too worried about his precious lungs to expose them to China's polluted air.

And if his stuck up countenance wasn't enough to make me hate him, he was dating the snobbish Tanya Wickham. Where Cullen was the poster boy of the British team, Tanya was the female face of the team. With her supermodel looks that rivaled even Rosalie and her long, curling strawberry-blonde hair, she was the top female celebrity in the entire nation. And of course she was also a swimmer, so I had to spend time near her in the pool. Luckily she rarely saw fit to lower herself enough to talk to the rest of us athletes.

The media had been pushing the two swimmers together. Tanya of course was all too eager to date Cullen. Edward – I forced myself to think his name – however, lowered my opinion of him even more by agreeing.

I couldn't believe anyone with an ounce of common sense would date someone like Tanya, but I suppose Tanya and Cullen did have similar snobbish tendencies.

For once Tanya wasn't latched onto Cullen's arm, looking for attention and photographs. I wondered where she was.

"What's your problem?" His unnaturally perfect accent cut through my thoughts.

Oh, so he thought he was so much better than me.

"What's my problem?" I practically yelled back. "Just because I don't instantly drop to the ground at your feet worshipping your greatness doesn't mean I'm a worthless bitch. Why don't you get back to your arm candy? Where is she, anyway?"

That felt very good to let out. I was usually too shy to speak out like that, but Cullen brought out the worst in me. I refocused on his face to hear his response, forcing myself not to rake my eyes over his too-perfect-for-his-own-good body. I wondered if, had he not been born so utterly perfect, he would have turned out to be less of a snob.

I doubted it. Looks were influential, but personality doesn't change.

I was once again pulled from my speculation by his answer.

"You know what? I don't care what you think of me." Ha! Like I believed _that_. "And Tanya is back at our hotel room sleeping."

Tanya ditched the opening ceremony but Cullen came? Interesting.

"Shouldn't you be with her? Preparing for your precious races and getting sleep?"

"Actually, I'd rather be at the ceremony, thank you very much."

Now that answer shocked me. What was he referring to? It didn't sound like him at all.

"BELLA!!" Saved by Alice yet again. She bounded up beside me with the rest of our friends slightly behind. That saved me the trouble of having to find them.

"Edward," she greeted Cullen. Alice was friendly to everyone, even the people that didn't deserve any respect.

True to form, he nodded briefly and turned on his heel, striding off with quick, powerful steps. I couldn't figure him out. For a second his words sounded almost human, but then a second later the stuck up poster boy had returned.

I stared at the space where he had stood for a few seconds, deliberating over ways to avoid meeting him for the rest of the Olympics. My odds were not very good, as there was only one pool for all the races. We were bound to be in the building at the same time.

Alice snapped her fingers in front of my face and I jumped. I must have been staring off into space again. Alice must be getting used to it by now, since I was constantly lost in thought.

Alice grabbed my hand, pulling me practically off my feet as we began walking again. We wandered amongst the athletes again, but my heart was no longer in it. After my confrontation with Cullen, I had lost a bit of faith in the Olympic spirit.

It had been about an hour since the end of the ceremony, and the crowd of athletes was drastically thinning. As much as Alice and Rose loved to party, even they had to admit that it was time to head back to the hotel.

We meandered out of the stadium and breathed in the air of London. It was drizzling slightly, of course. There was no escaping the rain in Britain. Luckily I would avoid it mostly from all the time I'd spend in the pool complex.

We decided to walk the short distance to our rooms from the stadium, even in the rain, so that we could enjoy the feel of London.

As we wandered through the streets, we discussed all of the things we wanted to do during our stay in the city. Alice and Rosalie of course began naming off places to shop. They could only list Covent Gardens and Picadilly Circus before I began to protest. But Alice knew how to get me as she explained that Covent Gardens sold all sorts of things and many different antiques as well.

They also wanted to go visit Buckingham Palace and Westminster Abbey.

Jasper squeezed in his desire to go visit the British Museum and see the Rosetta Stone. It wasn't surprising with his love of history.

Same thing with Emmett. He of course wanted to make faces at the beefeaters and take pictures with them. He was just like a little kid sometimes, but we loved him for it.

I knew my friends would drag me around to most places in London, but my one stipulation was that we wander through Hyde Park. It was supposed to be absolutely gorgeous and huge. I could spend hours wandering through it and finding a nice area to curl up with a book. That would be my ideal heaven. All the typical tourist activities weren't especially important for me. I still wanted to see them all, but I wanted to take my time getting to them. But with such intense friends, my own timeline would be completely ignored.

Our discussion lasted us right up until we reached the front of the hotel where most of the U.S. athletes were staying. Alice and Jasper were rooming of course, and the same went for Rosalie and Emmett. Somehow I had managed to procure a room all to myself. I didn't have anyone else I'd want to room with, but I was unnaturally lucky for once.

We all hopped into an elevator and rode up to our rooms on the third floor. We had requested rooms near each other, and the hotel had complied.

I said goodnight to my friends, hugging Alice and Rose quickly with the excitement from earlier rising again.

I paused at my door, calling, "Try to calm down enough to get some sleep!"

Even I might have trouble getting to sleep tonight from all the emotions coursing through me at the moment. After a few failed attempts with the key, I finally stumbled into my room. It was still fairly neat; we hadn't been here long enough for my stuff to migrate far around the room.

I decided to take a nice long soak in the Jacuzzi bathtub in my room. I started the water and lowered my body into the warm water. My muscles relaxed instantly and I breathed a sigh of relief. The day was over, and I would soon be in control of my life again, once my races began.

While I was in such a peaceful mood, I decided to look back and reflect on my day. I still couldn't believe how quickly everything had changed. What had started as the perfect night with anticipation of friendly relations had quickly turned into a bitter confrontation.

I still couldn't believe how half-assed Edward Cullen's attempt at a cordial greeting was. He hadn't even tried to sound excited to be there. I wondered if he acted that way to everyone or just me.

Or maybe everyone else was too dazzled by his "absolute perfection" to pay attention to what came out of his mouth. Sure his appearance was even more gorgeous than Emmett or Jasper, who were both pretty damn good-looking, but his behavior and mannerisms made up for it.

I attempted to steer my mind off of the topic of Cullen. He didn't mean anything, anyway. He in no way affected the outcome of my Olympics. His _girlfriend_, however, was a different story. She would be racing against me.

But she was merely competition. Only this and nothing more. Just an obstacle to beat in the pool. Defeating her would probably shut her up very effectively.

Ah, the races. As much fun as all the showy events were, I couldn't wait to put the athletics in the spotlight. I wanted to show the world what I, Isabella Marie Swan, could do.

With that thought, I finished my soak and got out of the tub. I dried myself off and walked out into the room, wrapped in a towel, to grab some pajamas.

I threw those on and tossed the towel over the edge of the tub. After brushing my teeth, I crawled into bed.

Beginning my nighttime routine which was guaranteed to ease my mind and bring me sleep, I grabbed a book and started reading.

After a few chapters, I had successfully lost my mind in the world of Pride and Prejudice. I turned on some soft, soothing classical music and imagined myself as Elizabeth Bennett, dancing to the music with Mr. Darcy.

I felt myself slowly drifting off to sleep.

Right before I became lost in unconsciousness, however, a sudden image invaded my mind. I was too far gone to protest this image, no matter how startling it was.

In that final instant, the image of Mr. Darcy in my fantasies transformed into the face of Edward Cullen.


	3. Dream

We don't own Twilight!

* * *

BPOV

I opened my eyes to find myself still dancing with Cullen. He held me close as we twirled around gracefully. He was doing most of the work and I was following along, concentrating on staying on my feet. As I gazed up into his eyes, I couldn't seem to hate him. In fact, I felt _happy_ to be in his arms, and something else I couldn't recognize.

I let my eyes wander all over his face and body. He was looking positively dashing in a black tux that contrasted beautifully with his pale skin. All his toned muscle was hinted at underneath his clothes. I could feel the strength and power in his body as he practically carried me around the dance floor.

I looked back up to his perfect face and _smiled_ at him. Suddenly, I realized that Tanya wasn't here. I glanced around in a panic and noticed Alice, Rose, Jasper, and Emmett all smiling at me from around the dance floor. Tanya was nowhere in sight.

"Is something wrong, my love?" My love? Who the hell does he think he is?

My mind protested, but my body didn't listen.

"Absolutely nothing," I heard myself respond. "Everything is perfect. I love you."

I was screaming at my body to let go of him and get the hell out of there; again to no avail. I couldn't believe what was happening.

He leaned his head down to touch his forehead to mine as he replied, "I love you, too. So much. Forever."

As he spoke the words, two things happened simultaneously. The song stopped playing, sending the room into silence. At the same time, he closed the minimal space between us and pressed his lips to mine.

His lips molded softly to mine as sparks of passion and _love_ passed between us. It was the best feeling in the world, and my mind couldn't even bring itself to protest. Even with our bodies pressed together tightly, it still wasn't enough contact. I put more force into the kiss, deepening it, hoping to satisfy my cravings. It would never be enough.

He finally broke the kiss when we both started to run out of breath. My whole body was tingling from the fire that filled me with that kiss.

"I love you," he repeated in a whisper as he hugged me tight against his chest.

"Mr. and Mrs. Edward Cullen!" I heard a voice call on a microphone. The room filled with cheers and clapping and I automatically smiled at Edward as my mind tried to make sense of what had just been said. I was still in a daze after that kiss.

The same voice spoke once again. "Would the rest of the bridal party please join the happy couple on the dance floor for this next song?"

This was a wedding reception? For _my _wedding? I glanced down at my body and saw myself dressed in a beautiful, flowing white wedding gown.

It all suddenly clicked into place. No no NO! This couldn't be happening! Finally in control of my body, I broke free from him and made a dash for the door as the guests gasped. I had barely made it out the doors when he caught me by the arm and looked at me with alarm.

I looked back with panicked eyes as my vision began to lose focus and black out around the edges. I could distantly see his lips moving, but my ears were ringing and I couldn't hear anything. I felt myself sway slightly before I finally lost myself in the blackness and collapsed.

I woke with a start. I shot up in my bed quickly, shook my head and rubbed the sleep out of my eyes.

I was still in shock from the dream and couldn't quite manage to make sense of anything. I glanced at the clock; wondering what time it was. Five-thirty. Ugh.

I had hoped to get a nice, long and restful night's sleep after the late night. No such luck. That lovely dream had ruined all my chances of ever falling asleep again. I didn't even feel at all rested; my sleep must have been light and plagued with the emotional turmoil of the dream.

I groaned. Cullen could even disrupt my Olympics in my sleep. I was eternally grateful to the 'Olympic gods' for not scheduling any of my races today.

My thoughts drifted back to my dream. I was still disgusted at the idea of being married to Cullen. I couldn't even stand his snobbish attitude for a few minutes, let alone the rest of my life. It couldn't mean anything. After all, it was only a dream. If anything, it reinforced my hatred of him. It was all okay. We would both continue our separate ways.

Feeling assuaged by this thought, I decided that I should grab some breakfast. Even feeling at peace, I was still afraid of what I might see if I closed my eyes. I'd just have to drink plenty of coffee today.

I finally dragged myself out of bed and threw on some sweats. I didn't want to attract any attention while simply getting breakfast. I ran a brush through my hair and grabbed my ipod. I put on some energetic music to help wake me up before heading out the door.

I made my way downstairs and headed out of the hotel and across the street to a little café. I went for an instant kick as I ordered an espresso and a couple scones. I took them to a table by the window. I took a sip of the espresso, cringing slightly at the bitter taste as I gazed out the window.

The street was foggy and the sky gray, typical British weather. I hoped the sun would come out later; it would make my day much more pleasant.

I finished the espresso and ate one of the scones. I went back up to the counter, going for flavor this time. I took my mocha back to my table and grabbed a newspaper.

I would have to watch Jasper today; he had the preliminaries for his first race. As another swimmer I could get into all the races for free, as long as I sat in the designated viewing area.

I glanced down at the newspaper's front page. One headline jumped out at me: OLYMPIC STAR REFUSES COACH'S DEMANDS.

Underneath the bold headline was a picture of Edward Cullen in the Parade of Nations. I glanced down at the article, a few lines jumping out at me.

'Despite his coach's requests to stay home during the Opening Ceremony of the Olympics and the Parade of Nations, swimmer Edward Cullen attended the event last night.'

'Is this the end of Cullen's career?'

'Is he becoming too cocky?'

'Will this rebellious attitude be Cullen's downfall?'

'Edward Cullen needs to get his act in line if he expects to remain competitive in these Olympics.'

This article was completely bashing him for one decision he made. I almost felt sorry for Cullen for having to face this article. I wondered who his coach was and how much truth was in the article. His coach may not have even been too upset at the decision.

Articles like this were exactly why I tried to avoid the public spotlight. The higher the pedestal, the farther the fall. I preferred to not be as famous or well-known as others but still have my privacy. I could swim for myself rather than for the media's attention or pleasure.

I finished my coffee and scones before deciding to head back to the hotel room. Alice and Rosalie would be getting up before long to prepare for the day. Neither of them competed today, but they always wanted to look in pristine condition. We were all going to head to the pool complex to watch Jasper.

I headed out of the café as more people began to come in. It was definitely time for me to leave. More people meant more chances to be recognized. I was too tired to listen to someone gush about how awesome they thought I was. These people barely even know me. All they know are my swimming times and a few basic facts.

I loved swimming, but once I retired I wanted to be remembered for something different. I wanted to leave the mark of Bella Swan as the person, not just another swimmer. I wanted to do something that truly conveyed the real me.

Aside from swimming I had always shared a passion for reading. English had always been my favorite subject. I hoped that maybe, after swimming, I could become a writer. I wasn't sure if I wanted to be an author or work for a newspaper or magazine, but I did know I wanted to write.

As much as I enjoyed fantasizing about the future, however, I needed to focus on the present. Swimming was my first priority right now; especially this week.

More traffic now filled the street, so instead of attempting to walk straight across to the hotel, I walked down the street a bit to a crosswalk. I looked around me again as I waited for the light to switch to the little green man so I could cross. It was starting to hit me again. I was really in London. Here. This city I'd dreamed of visiting for most of my life. And I was really in the Olympics.

It felt like all my dreams were coming true. I was on such a high right now and I never wanted to come down from it. I didn't even know if I'd win any gold medals, but at this moment, I was perfectly happy and content. No matter what happened here, I would come out of it feeling like everything was perfect.

The light changed and I walked across the street and back to my hotel. I was feeling much more awake and, after making it to my room, decided to get ready for the day.

I put on some music again as I put on some jeans and a Team USA jacket. It was still just a bit after seven and Jasper's race wasn't until two in the afternoon. They had put most of the day's races in the afternoon or evening to allow the athletes who attended the ceremony some time to recover.

Even if Alice and Rose were probably awake, Jasper and Emmett would still be sleeping. Rather than wake them up by knocking on their doors, I decided to spend some more time reading.

I lost myself once again in Pride and Prejudice and three hours quickly slipped by.

Now that it was after ten, I knew everyone would be awake and just about ready to leave. I grabbed my bag with all my supplies in it and headed across the hall to Alice and Jasper's room.

I knocked on the door and was almost immediately greeted by a chirping Alice.

"Good morning, Bella! You ready to watch Jazz?"

"Of course I'm ready, Alice. Shall we go get Rose and Emmett and head out?" I already knew the answer to this question, of course, but I figured it couldn't hurt to make sure.

"Yep, we're all set! Let's go grab some food and head over to the pool! I'm so excited!" Alice was literally bouncing around as she joined me in the hall and danced over to Rose and Emmett's room.

All we had to do was knock on their door once before Rose and Emmett both walked right out of their room.

"To the pool!" shouted Emmett. He was clearly excited.

We all headed out of the building, chatting aimlessly. We stopped at a little sandwich shop on the way to the pool. All of us except Jasper bought sandwiches and ate them as we walked. Jasper had eaten a big breakfast to prepare for the race so he didn't have to eat at any time near the start of his race.

Before long we were at the pool and had to part ways with Jasper. He headed off to put on a swimsuit and jump into the warm-up pool as we headed to find our seats. We were all in the special designated seating area. Rose and I could always sit there since we both participated in aquatic sports. Alice and Emmett got to sit there as people close to a participating athlete. Emmett's intimidating size probably had something to do with it as well, not to mention Alice's persuasive abilities.

We talked and watched the other races as we passed the time until it was Jasper's turn. The Americans seemed to be doing fairly well. Most of our swimmers were making it to the semifinals. After a couple hours Jasper finally came out onto the deck.

He was still wearing his warm-ups and was listening to his ipod. He briefly looked up at us and gave Alice a smile before sitting down. He closed his eyes and a look of intense concentration spread over his face.

After another half-hour, it was nearly Jasper's time. He took off his warm-ups and gave Alice a nice view of him in his skin-tight suit.

Before long they announced the first heat of the preliminaries. No one particularly impressive was in this heat. They finished quickly, and it was now Jasper's turn to race in the second heat.

He slowly approached the blocks and stood next to his in lane four. After the signal to mount the blocks, he climbed up and shook out his arms to stay loose.

"Take your mark."

Jasper crouched down, gripping the front edge of the blocks in the traditional form.

"Set."

He tensed up on the blocks as all of us in the stands tensed up as well, anxious to see how Jasper would fare.

The pool was dead silent in that instant as everyone waited for the race to start.

BEEP! The tone sounded, and everyone dove off the blocks as the race began.

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The next chapter, number four is where I jump into the mix as Edward!


	4. Chapstick

Here it is bbs the chapter in which I officially jump into the collab. I hope you enjoy, I had a good time writing (read: riding) Edward.

Much love to my boo and beta for all things written: PWTF

**LL: Well bb, do you think they are ready for me and the Edward I am about to unleash?**

_PWTF: They'd better be ready for it! Even ready they'll be swept off their feet!_

**LL: Oh noes, should we wait so we can catch them?**

_PWTF: Naw, the shock'll be good for them! The truth hurts, ya know!_

**LL: MMMM hurts to good :)**

_PWTF: Definitely! And feels so good to be in on!_

We do not unfortunately own anything in the Twilight Universe.

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EPOV

Traipsing into the hotel, I didn't feel like heading up to mine and Tanya's room just yet. I knew from her numerous text messages that she was there and she was waiting for me. It was all she could do to suck attention from me right now. She seemed to forget that we were here for the Olympics and not a weekend tryst like the past summer, when we spent a week nearly naked on some Greek Island whose name I couldn't even recall.

Tossing my bag onto the floor next to a squashy looking couch, I dropped down with a plop and set my feet up on the table in front of me. My eyes scanned the headlines, no doubt looking for the most ridiculous one including my name. Picking up the newspaper farthest to the right, they claimed that I went against my coach's wishes by going to the Opening Ceremony the other night.

_Bullshit._

Laurent didn't give a crap what I did so long as I didn't let her – his eyes wandered to Tanya – get in the way of my concentration. Meaning, for the duration of the games I was to, in no uncertain terms, keep it in my pants.

Not that it was difficult. Tanya was attractive, but that's about where it ended. The sex was decent and we looked good together in photos. That was the depth of our relationship. We both went along with it because our ratings skyrocketed the moment we were first photographed together. She was more into it than I was, though if you asked her she wouldn't admit it. Hell, I don't even know if she realized.

Tossing the paper back onto the pile, I sunk back into the cushions of the couch, hoping upon hope that maybe I could just disappear into it. A tinkling laugh filled the lobby as I lifted my head to see some of my fellow Olympians enter the hotel. The largest and biggest of them all was Emmett McCarty, a weightlifter, I think. He had his huge, meaty arm around the long and lithe Rosalie Hale. You couldn't miss Rosalie Hale from a mile away, with legs that go on for miles and hair so gold it glittered in the sun. I knew the bunch well enough to know they hung around often, and Jasper Whitlock was easily recognizable with the pixie like gymnast, Alice Brandon, hanging on his back like a tiny little backpack.

Bella Swan, another fellow swimmer and apparent fifth wheel, brought up the rear, smiling at her friends and holding back a yawn with the back of her hand. A quick sweep of the lobby brought her eyes to me, giving me a sad looking smile before a mask of irritation swept over her face. My brow furrowed, not understanding either of the emotions that played upon her face. I waited till they boarded the lifts before grabbing my bag and making my way upstairs, knowing if I didn't make an appearance soon, Tanya would come looking for me.

The minute the doors opened, I stepped off and to the left in the direction of our shared room. She came around the corner with a full ice bucket and smiled at me as we met at the door. Pulling out my key, I opened the door for her as she entered the room, and I followed after, tossing my bag in the corner. I flopped down on the bed as she milled around the room and went to the bathroom for a shower. Today had been harsh; I had seen Whitlock go in for his heat and break his personal best with a time of 1:42:23 for the 200M freestyle. Just two heats later I beat my own personal best, his record, and the world record, clocking in at 1:42:10. That meant I would be the top semifinalist going up against him and fourteen others in the 200 freestyle semis tomorrow morning.

Whitlock had congratulated me, his smile not quite meeting his eyes, and I returned the sentiment respectfully. We sat together in the cool down pool, neither one conversing, and we each headed into the locker room to dress. The only difference was when Whitlock left the locker room he was greeted by not one but five of his friends. I was met with my own shadow, knowing Tanya was surely elsewhere promoting herself. Rolling my head to the side, I saw Tanya stepping out of the bathroom in her towel and heading towards the dresser. She didn't know I was watching, and she slipped something sexy looking from her drawer and dropped her towel, shimmying into the thing before bending to pick up the towel.

Rolling over and groaning, I knew where she was going with this and I wanted to no part in it. Sex with Tanya was more detrimental to my mood and performance than it was helpful. It distracted me and confused me. It confused me because she was, like I mentioned, attractive, and she was attracted to me. There were times though, when she just didn't do it for me, we didn't do it for me. It is surprisingly easy for a guy to fake an orgasm if the girl is so vain and self-centered that she doesn't even notice.

Sex with me seemed to have the opposite effect on her. She seemed to glow for days afterwards and her mood always improved. Her performance also seemed heightened in her post coital glow. Pulling the covers back, I slipped my t-shirt over my head and slipped off my shoes before sitting down on the bed. I pulled my contact case out of the bedside drawer and took out my contacts before turning out the light. My head hit the pillow gently and I closed my eyes, relishing in the feel of the cool cotton on my still slightly overheated body.

The door clicked closed quietly and I could hear Tanya walking across the room slowly, most likely so that she didn't trip over anything in the dark. Pulling her covers back, she slipped in next to me, making sure her smooth legs slipped against mine. I heard her huff as her legs found my soft, fuzzy pajama pants. She seemed to be under the belief that men should either sleep naked or in only boxers, because every time she saw me wearing these or my sweats she would make a snorting sound before telling me how I shouldn't cover up such an attractive body.

She obviously didn't take my faux sleeping hint because she sidled up to me, her hands sliding up my chest, which, to her liking, was bare. I could feel her hand cupping my cheek and turning my head slowly to face her. My act must be working, because she moved on to phase two of her evil plan. Phase one is always trying to determine whether I'm faking or not, and if she determines that yes, I am really asleep, she moves to phase two. Phase two is where she uses her pseudo seductive, really slightly creepy moves to try to rouse me from my slumber so I can service her into winning her races.

The hand cupping my cheek slowly made a trail down my neck and chest, tracing small circles. Once her hands hit my abs she added in her mouth, peppering small kisses down the trail of hair leading down underneath my pants. Her other hand joined the first at the waistband of my pants and began untying the knot I had made. The corners of my mouth turned up just barely in a smirk as I heard her huff and curse as she tried to undo the triple knot I had done in my pants. Finally she was victorious as I felt her tight hands go slack as she pulled the strings loose and pushed the waistband down, underneath what she was hoping to be my raging erection.

She seemed to be disappointed enough to not even make any noises, because she reached into my boxers and took my limp penis into her hand and started to pump and stroke it. I knew I was going to have to play my part convincingly if I wanted this to end quickly. My thoughts quickly went back to the night of the Opening Ceremony. Bella Swan was certainly a name I was familiar with, though she probably had the least media coverage of all the swimmers competing in this year's Olympics. She definitely had an attitude and quite possibly a snappy little mouth on her. What I would give to have those snappy little lips wrapped around my base right now instead of Tanya's thin dry horse lips. Seriously, someone needs to introduce her to the idea of chapstick.

Mmmm, long, glossy brown waves spread out in my lap. My fingers threaded through them, tugging slightly when I would feel myself hit the back of her throat. I was definitely hard at this point and knew Tanya would be grinning if she could fashion her mouth into any sort of facial expression other than an open mouth. She had been such a bitch to me when I tried greeting her. Girls had always come so easily to me, like a moth to a flame. Bella might actually be a challenge for me, and god knows I could go for a good challenge. I saw the way the male swimmers ogled her and it incensed me to no end.

_How dare those assholes lay their slimy little eyes all over my Bella. Whoa. Where did that come from? She isn't yours, Edward, she isn't anyone's._

That thought made me smile. What would I do with Tanya though? She would never leave me, and I'm pretty damn sure she would raise hell if I tried to leave her. I suppose I could always just try and think of Bella when Tanya goes down on me or when she insists we finally have sex again, because it would happen eventually. There was no comparison though, they weren't even close.

Tanya was getting turned on; I could hear it in her voice and the small vibrations she made around me. Slipping my hand down into her hair, I pretended it was the brown liquid silk of Bella's hair instead of the dry, flaky red sandpaper that Tanya spent so much time on everyday. At some point I would have to ask Bella how she took such good care of her hair after spending so much time in the chlorine. Tanya's sharp beady eyes locked with mine as I tugged on her hair and slipped my eyes closed. Behind my eyelids I could see big brown doe eyes looking up at me as she worked me in her mouth and I came in Tanya's mouth, Bella's name but a mouthed whisper on my lips, much too low for Tanya to hear. She lay back, breathing heavily and wiping the corner of her mouth, no doubt waiting for me to reciprocate.

That would not be happening.

I turned to my side away from her and closed my eyes, and all I could see were those big brown eyes under me as I lowered myself down to her and had my wicked way with her in my dreams.

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Well? What do you think? Solid gold? I agree! Leave love bbs!


	5. Swimcaps and Sweatpants

Here it is bbs, chapter 5, written by PWTF and betad by me!

**PWTF: So...do you think they've abandoned us by now?  
**  
_LL: Mmmm..no I think they want to hear what Edward says. I know if I was them and didn't already know what was going to happen, I would be on the edge of my seat_

**PWTF: Heh. I know what's going to happen and I'm STILL on the edge of my seat.  
**  
_LL: ::Smirks:: Do you know what's going to happen? _

**PWTF: Oh, crap! You're writing the next chapter. I've now fallen off of my seat!!! But first they've gotta get through this chapter...**

**Disclaimer: We unfortunately do not own anything in the Twilight universe, that is all Smeyer's doing. We do however own our random chapter titles and love them like our own little babies!**

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Slowly walking into our hotel I followed behind my friends, who talked animatedly. Jasper had qualified for the next round, although his time had been beaten by Cullen with a new world record.

It didn't particularly matter, though, because there were still two more rounds before the medals were awarded. A win in the preliminaries meant nothing for the finals. Winning then was all that counted.

Rubbing my eyes, I was already exhausted from my nearly sleepless night last night. I was fighting the urge to fall asleep with every blink. Once I made it to my room I knew I would collapse.

This was actually a good thing, because my first race was tomorrow morning. I couldn't afford to be tired tomorrow. While the preliminaries didn't decide anything, I couldn't slack off. I still had to be in the top sixteen.

A lone figure was sitting on one of the bright red couches in the lounge area. Focusing on the figure I realized it was Edward Cullen.

He was sitting there with an upset and seemingly resigned expression on his face. He had just set a new world record, what did he have to be upset about?

He had a newspaper in his hand. It must be the paper I saw this morning. Maybe he was upset about the article, or perhaps about something his coach had said to him.

I noticed him look up and meet my eyes. I gave him a sad smile, letting him know I felt bad for how the article bashed him.

Wait! What? Feel bad? What am I thinking? Sure the article bashed him, but hadn't I decided this morning that I didn't care? He got enough positive attention from the media.

One little article was not going to kill his reputation. How could I feel bad for the media's poster boy? Besides, he had Tanya waiting for him upstairs.

She'd erase any negative thoughts he had running through his mind. I bet he couldn't wait to get upstairs to fuck around with Tanya, celebrating his victory.

My slight smile disappeared as I began to glare at him instead. My mask was set in a face of hatred. I wanted him to know that he could fuck Tanya all he wanted, but messing with me or my friends was against his best interest.

In a few seconds, we were past him and my face relaxed. Why did hating him take so much effort? It should be easy, but somehow it drained me.

Luckily I would be asleep soon and I would be re-energized for tomorrow. We headed up to our rooms and I headed to bed with none of the ritual from last night.

I merely changed into pajamas and collapsed on the bed, falling into a deep dreamless sleep.

**

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**

The next morning, I woke up feeling refreshed at six-thirty. As I prepared for the day, I knew I had to be at the pool by eight o'clock to prepare for my race at eleven.

I decided to grab some breakfast now so it could wear off before the race. Knowing not to wake my friends, as the other events were also beginning and we were going to be splitting up today.

Pulling on some clothes and brushing my hair, I didn't bother to make myself look perfect since I'd be jumping into a pool in just a couple hours.

Instead of heading out, I decided to stop at the hotel buffet. I walked in by the tables, and it was packed! Granted, there wasn't a huge amount of space, but there hardly appeared to be any open seats.

Hope I can find a place to sit, I thought to myself. Heading over to the buffet I grabbed a plate and loaded on some eggs, sausages and toast.

I wanted enough food to give me energy for the race, but not enough that it would affect my swimming. I'd gotten pretty good at finding a balance.

Once I'd grabbed my food and some orange juice, I began wandering, looking for a seat. I looked and looked until I finally spotted one open seat at a table for two. As I rushed over, I hoped no one was already sitting there.

About ten feet from the table I realized who was sitting at the table. Oh no, I groaned to myself. How could I be so unlucky?

After briefly contemplating eating while standing or waiting for another spot, I despairingly passed on those ideas. I really needed to get eating.

With a sigh, I closed the distance between me and _him_.

"Is anyone sitting here?" I asked in a perturbed voice.

Cullen looked up at me, a shocked expression on his face. I lost myself in his eyes for a moment before I realized he still hadn't answered.

"Um…are you going to answer?"

"Right," he responded. "I was just surprised you even talked to me. No, the seat isn't taken. Are you sure you wouldn't rather sit someplace else?"

"It's the only open seat," I grumbled.

"Well then, go right ahead."

Surprised at how friendly he actually sounded, I sat down. And how perfectly musical his voice was. No. Don't focus on his physical traits. Even perfection can't excuse a dark interior.

Without looking at him, I began eating. I hoped he would get the hint and not try to talk to me.

Strangely enough, though, it was me that broke the silence.

"So, no Tanya this morning?"

She would be swimming against me in this event and I wanted to know what she was doing right now. I'd even resort to talking to Cullen to discover anything about my opponent.

She was the one that mattered right now. And anyone else I was swimming against. Cullen could wait.

"She's still sleeping, probably. I came down here without her."

He…left her upstairs? Maybe their connection wasn't as deep as I thought. The way he talked about her sure didn't sound like he cared much.

"Oh," I started lamely. "Isn't she swimming today?" That was a stupid question. Of course she's swimming today. I already knew the answer. What was with me?

"Yeah, but I'm not her personal assistant. She can get herself to the pool."

He sounded even more dismissive of her. It seemed almost like he was letting up the façade, just for me.

We lapsed into silence once more as I finished eating my breakfast. It was strangely easy to talk to him this morning, when I wasn't busy trying to hate him.

I'd resigned myself to talking to him peaceably when I sat down at the table. I'd expected some terse conversation, some awkward sentences. Not his easy responses and these seemingly revealing statements.

As I took the last bite, I worked up enough courage to directly ask him about what I was suspecting.

"So how much do you care about Tanya?"

He sighed and looked down, like he was contemplating how to respond. Was he asking himself whether to tell the truth or to lie? I could only guess.

"It's…complicated." Oh, thanks for that. Clarifies so much.

"Care to elaborate?"

"Not right now. You should probably be going soon anyway. But if you'll meet with me tonight, I'll explain everything. For whatever reason, I know you seem to hate me. I don't want that.

If anything I can say will help you understand me a little better, I'll say it. Just not now. Later."

What was he getting at? Why would he care if I hated him? I didn't see how he could change my opinion of him, but I was strangely curious as to what he wanted to say. But I was skeptical about his intentions.

"Like a date?"

"It'd be whatever you want to call it. Gathering between friends? Fellow athletes?"

I could live with that.

"Fine. I'll talk. Not promising anything, though. Where do you want to meet?"

"Meet me in Hyde Park. At the fountain near the main entrance off of Bayswater Road, near Lancaster Gate. This afternoon at say, four o'clock?"

I'd been meaning to explore Hyde Park anyway, so this was a perfect opportunity for me to see part of the park.

"It's a deal."

"Until then," he concluded as he rose from the table and strode gracefully away and out of the buffet.

I let out a breath I hadn't known I'd been holding. This felt strangely significant. Though I hadn't agreed to like Edward or anything, this felt like a turning point.

I hoped he didn't get the wrong message from my agreeing to meet with him. This didn't change anything between us. This was merely a way for me to find out some dirt on my greatest competition for the breaststroke.

As I stood up to leave the table, I sighed. I decided to stop pondering the implications of this agreement for the sake of my race. I needed to focus now. Edward could wait until later.

Heading back up to my room briefly I had to grab my swim bag. I'd had it already packed since before we even arrived in London, so I didn't need to spend time checking to make sure I had everything I needed.

Walking the short distance to the pool, I breathed in the London air. It smelled fresher today and it appeared that the sun might poke through the clouds later. Actual sunshine in London? It must be a sign of something good.

Entering the pool complex, I made my way to the locker rooms. Since I didn't have a need for a locker, I took my bag into one of the changing rooms. I threw on a basic swimsuit for my warm up.

Tossing my bag over my shoulder, I strode out of the locker room and onto the deck of the warm up/cool down pool. It was huge, as was necessary for so many swimmers to all be loosening up at once.

After setting my bag on a chair I swiftly pulled my hair back into a ponytail. I didn't bother putting on a cap; I didn't need it for simply warming up and my hair, while long for most swimmers, wasn't much of a burden to me.

It only reached down to my mid to upper back. I figured, while it slowed me down slightly in warm ups, it was worth it to not have to wear the tight and constricting cap.

Jumping into the pool I tread water for a moment to allow myself to get used to the temperature.

The pool was already crowded, but there was still enough room for me. Luckily I was good at blocking out sound and focusing on what mattered – my swimming.

I alternated between all the strokes before focusing on my breaststroke some. Once I was warmed up, I hopped out of the pool, checking the clock.

It was now about ten o'clock. I noticed my coach, Leslie, standing over by my bag. I went to check in with her.

We talked for a few minutes. It basically consisted of her telling me to remember everything she'd taught me in these years of training. She was a fairly easy coach, letting me know she had faith in my own responsibility.

She helped me in the pool during training, but when it came to the actual races, she didn't put more pressure on me like some coaches would.

I toweled off and headed back into the changing stalls. After a few minutes of struggling, I'd finally managed to get myself into the U.S. swimming bodysuit.

My eyes began to tear up as it suddenly hit me; I was going to be swimming _in the Olympics_, representing my entire country.

Blinking back my tears rapidly, I smiled brightly; I was ready for this. I'd been ready for four years. I could finally complete my dream of swimming in the Olympics.

With my head held high, I threw on my team warm ups and a pair of flip flops before heading out onto the pool deck.

As I sat on the deck I pulled out my ipod. I wanted to attempt to forget the huge crowd watching.

Before long I had I lost myself in the music and soon they were calling warnings for us to prepare. Having the poor luck of being in the first head, I immediately took out my headphones and stripped down to my suit.

I put my hair up into a bun before putting the cap on over it. After I made sure my goggles were appropriately tight, I stood up, shaking my arms and legs to make sure I was still loose.

Blocking out my surroundings, I didn't think about Tanya or any of the other competition. I merely focused myself on making sure I performed to _my_ best. I knew that if I did my best, everything else would fall into place.

The first heat was called to the blocks and I headed up to my lane. As one of the fastest swimmers at this event, I was in the best lane, number four.

As I stepped up to the block I let myself feel the confidence that came with that positioning. I was here for a reason; I was good. And now I could show the world just how good I was.

I crouched down at the call and then tensed.

I focused intensely on the impending buzzer. It buzzed, and I was off the blocks immediately, diving powerfully into the water.

My strokes cut through the water, gliding long distances with each pull, reveling in the feel of power and strength that I enjoyed every time I swam.

All 200 meters I pushed myself hard, until I touched the wall after the final length.

**

* * *

**

Lazing around on my bed I thought back to my day. I had won my heat easily. Going into the semifinals I had the third fastest time.

I was fine with this. Being in the first heat was tough. The faster times generally came in the later heats, when the bar had already been set. I was glad to just make it to the next round.

But right now, I had something other than swimming on my mind. It was three-thirty. Only a half an hour before I was met Edward.

I wasn't even dressed yet, I was still wearing the sweats I had thrown on after I had finished cleaning up after the race. Why was I agonizing so much over a simple meeting?

It. Doesn't. Matter. What. He. Thinks.

I was trying to pound that into my head, but it never seemed to sink in. Finally I gave up and just threw on jeans and a v-neck T-shirt. Simple and comfortable, but a little more stylish than just a basic crew neck T-shirt.

Grabbing my discarded jacket off the chair, I slipped it on and threw on my tennis shoes. I took one final glance in the mirror before heading out the door.

This was it. I was off to actually meet with the man I hate, Edward Cullen.

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Well? Leave us some love! Up next is the meeting with Edward written by moi!!


	6. Bangers & Mash

_LL: whew so that last chapter was pretty intense huh?_

**PWTF: um...it's already flown out of my brain..thinking...one "sex"...what happened again? right. Breakfast. and almost meeting. It sure was intense to write. I can't even imagine reading it!**

_LL: I hope they had a good time_

**PWTF: If they didn't last chapter, they sure will this one! You did amazing bb!**

_LL: Aw thanks, do you think they can handle the awesomeness we're about to throw at them this chapter?_

**PWTF: Not sure...maybe we shouldn't give it to them yet...give them time to prepare...**

_LL: Ooooh you're so cruel bb_

**PWTF: mwahaha!!! It's fun having my own story to taunt people with rather than being on the other end...**

_LL**: **trufax_

I'm in the drivers seat for this one and thanks to PWTF's amazing writing it flowed instantly! Thanks for cleanin' up my work bb!

Disclaimer: We do not own anything twilight related. That is all Smeyers biznass.

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**EPOV**

The park was extraordinarily empty, considering it was mid afternoon and the sun had made a rare and awkward appearance in the London sky. It was something special when the rays of the sun shone down here without a trace of the misty moisture that was so characteristic of our city.

Walking along the path, I spotted a comfortable-looking tree with some shade and slowly walked towards it, taking care not to get in the path of mothers pushing prams. Leaning up against the rough bark of the tree, I slid down to the ground, hissing lightly as I felt the bark leave scratches on my skin underneath the fabric of my t-shirt.

Crossing my legs as I hit the ground, I pulled an apple from my pocket and polished it on the knee of my jeans before taking a large bite from it and studying my surroundings. Turning my watch around, I noted that it was several minutes to four, but I had no idea what kind of schedule Bella Swan ran on.

Was she habitually punctual or fashionably late? I took her for a punctual person, and I was not disappointed when only a moment later I noticed her entering the gates to the park, taking her time and drinking in her surroundings. As she drew closer, I could see the contentment in her face as her eyes drifted, never focusing on one view for too long, and before I knew it, she had walked right by me.

Jumping up from my spot, I tossed my apple core into a garbage can before jogging up behind her and tapping her on the shoulder.

She startled before whirling around, looking aghast, but her expression became resigned as she realized it was me rather than a mugger or a beggar – which she may have preferred to me. Realizing that with a grimace, I greeted her and gestured for her to continue walking.

"So Tanya?" She all but spat out, and I could hear the venom in her voice. Being this close to her, I could smell the faint traces of chlorine on her, remnants from her heat this afternoon, but also a scent that was so very Bella that it could not have been created from a scent or product.

It was a scent that was purely her, and as it swirled around my head I found myself unable to respond until she again asked, "so Tanya?"

I blinked at her, nodding, and led her to a small table outside an ice cream stand and absently pulled her chair out for her before taking my own. Tilting her head to the side, she gave me a funny little look.

She sat for a minute, her eyes boring into mine, before they dropped down and then to the side.

Closing my eyes, I tried to decide how much to tell her.

"Tanya and I. We look very good together; the media thinks we make a good couple." She looked at me, her face blank as she waited for me to explain my vague statement.

"We both entered the swimming scene around the same time; we trained together often, and that's when speculation began." I swallowed, taking in her expression, which had softened slightly. She reached her hand down into her bag, grabbing two bottles of water and offering one to me.

Accepting the bottle, I twisted the lid off, drinking half of it down in one gulp before replacing the cap and setting it down.

"I'm sure you've been asked enough times by reporters, or maybe you haven't. The media pays a lot of attention to things that have nothing to do at all with the reason for your fame. I'm a swimmer, but," she gave me a small smile, letting me know she was still with me.

"They focus on my family, and of course my love life, which I hated, because back then I didn't have one. The entire country of course seemed to think I should, and it almost seemed easier to go along with the lie than to have half the country's eligible women throwing themselves at me constantly."

Trying to keep the smug, all-knowing smirk off my face, I kept my expression neutral and tried not to look at her face quite yet.

"Don't get me wrong, I love women and I'm straight as an arrow, but all these fans that claim they know me and want me don't know a damn thing about me. They know the basics and they know the stats but they don't know me."

My voice dropped to a hushed whisper so low, I wasn't even sure Bella would hear me, "nobody does."

My eyes finally lifted to gaze upon Bella's face just in time to see her look away, blinking rapidly. I looked away again, not wanting her to feel uncomfortable under my gaze.

Out of the corner of my eye I could see her reaching her hand across the table before it stopped short, hesitating. I saw her mouth open as if she was about to speak, but I had to finish this before she said anything.

"So that's how Tanya and I happened. I thought if I went along with what the media wanted, then the women would leave me alone and the media would stop hassling me about my love life, but none of it has worked. Instead now the media is asking us questions about our relationship and asking when I'm going to pop the question and how having a family will affect our training and all I can do is sit there and gape like an idiot, because I don't love her, Bella. I never have. I only did it because I thought it would make things better. I don't love her, I don't want to marry her, and I certainly don't want to have kids with her."

I downed the other half of the water bottle, my eyes stinging with unshed tears as I let loose everything I had planned on NOT telling her.

"The worst thing is, I'm so caught up in this lie and everyone believes it. Tanya knew in the beginning we were only together for show, but after so long I think she's actually starting to believe it, and that's scaring the shit out of me because I don't know how to get out of it anymore. I just want to be with someone I love, someone who knows the real me, Bella, and I fucked everything up and I don't know how to get out of this."

My cheeks burned red as I realized my voice had risen during my tirade and my eyes weren't able to hold the tears in, and I coughed violently, trying to pass the tears off as my eyes watering. When I looked at Bella, I saw that it wasn't working, so I balled my fists up and rubbed them deeply, almost painfully, into my eyes, trying to stop the tears.

I heard a scraping as Bella pulled her chair up into mine, and I felt her small arm wrap as far around my shoulder as it would reach. As I leaned into her, I was mad and embarrassed over the episode, and I felt her other arm come around my neck to hold me close to her.

Her body felt stiff next to mine, and I knew this must be making her slightly uncomfortable, but I just couldn't bring myself to care as she smoothed down my hair and hummed quietly while I settled down.

**

* * *

**

This was probably the best dream I'd ever had, and I have had a lot of good dreams in my lifetime. In my dream I was wrapped around Bella and she was wrapped around me, and she was so small and warm as we held each other.

It was as though I could almost feel her running her fingers through my hair, and I felt warm lips press against my forehead, once and then again. I suddenly felt as though I was falling and jerked awake to see a jostled-looking Bella staring at me with wide eyes.

Oh god, I wasn't dreaming was I? All that really happened, I really just told her all that and cried in front of her.

What was she going to think of me now?

She must think I'm a complete loser.

Wait.

Wait a minute.

Did she really kiss me?

Or was that part of the dream?

My eyes met hers, searching, and she gave me a cautious smile before her grip on me loosened up. My arms, which had circled around her waist, went slack, and I stretched my upper body, looking over at her. She winced as she stretched her arms and torso.

Great, she's a tiny little thing and she had to sit here and support me while I napped for god knows how long.

Way to be a douche bag Edward, always thinking of yourself before others! She turned in her seat and she smiled at me, "I'm so sorry Bella, I didn't mean to freak out or fall asleep."

"It's…okay Edward, really. I really didn't expect you to tell me all that, I mean I figured there was something – off about you guys, but I had no idea it went that deep. Reporters, for the most part, leave me alone about my personal life. I can't even imagine how they must pester you and how annoying that gets. I…I don't even know what to say about Tanya really. It's not hard to understand how you got into it, but you let it get so far, Edward. I wish I had some amazing words of wisdom for you, but I don't even know where to begin."

Nodding my head towards her, it was a better response than I had hoped for. I had expected a more outraged response, about what a horrible person I was, or what a failure I am. It wouldn't be the first time I'd heard those arguments before, and I don't really know if I had been expecting to hear them from her. I never know what to expect from her.

"I know you hate me Bella, but I can't let you hate me based on what you think you know. If you decide that after all I've told you that you still hate me, then I can accept; no I expect that. I guess I just needed you to hate me for the right reasons, not the wrong ones."

Closing my eyes to avoid her rejection, I turned from my seat and took off at a furious pace towards the entrance. Risking the look back, I saw her only several feet from me, jogging to catch up.

Stopping, I allowed her to catch up. She wasn't even short of breath as she slowed and slung her bag over her shoulder. Looking up at me she shook her head, as if she was missing something.

"Edward, I don't hate you, I don't think I ever did. I just didn't understand you. I'd thought you were just out to flaunt your fame and incredible looks, and being with Tanya was another way for you to attract attention.

I thought you were so snobbish. But I can see that's not the actual case. But one question. Were you actually sick for Beijing, or were you making excuses to not go into the polluted air?"

So that was why she hated me. Not because I was dating her competition, because she thought I was some stuck-up pretty boy. Feeling relieved, I let out a big sigh.

"So you think I have incredible looks?" I enjoyed watching Bella blush as I pointed out her earlier statement.

"But to answer your question, yes, I was actually sick. I wanted more than anything to compete in Beijing. About a week before they started, however, I came down with pneumonia. I couldn't possibly swim when I could barely breathe."

Bella smiled widely, presumably as she realized that I was actually a decent guy.

"Thank for you talking to me and clearing things up. I think it helped you, too, to let out all your feelings about Tanya. It should help to have someone know that it's all an act, you know; it's less of a secret this way. Edward, I know we're kind of opponents, coming from different countries and all, but I'd like to be there for you if you'll let me. No one should have to go through this alone. I can even try and help you think of ways to break it off with Tanya if that's what you really want."

Nodding my acceptance, I tried to find the motivation in her eyes, but I couldn't see any pity in them. She seemed to be genuinely sincere about being friends with me.

Happy with my agreement, she glanced at her watch; it had to be getting close to dinner time and we should probably be getting back to the hotel. Thinking along those lines she looked up at me as I towered over her small frame.

"It's almost six o'clock, do you want to grab some dinner before heading back to the hotel? I haven't ventured out of the hotel much yet and would love to see what London has to offer. Will you be my tour guide?"

Laughing at her eagerness, I agreed and she followed me out of Hyde Park, and we walked along the streets of London. Finally, I decided to take her to the Ale Trail.

It was a comfortable little pub that I liked to spend time at, but Tanya found it too low brow for her and would never come with me. Holding the door open, I waited for Bella to pass through the threshold before following her in and walking up to the podium.

Winking and passing the hostess a twenty, I asked her to please find us a quiet booth in the back.

Gathering our menus, she motioned for us to follow her, and I let Bella lead me, not wanting to pass up the rare opportunity to check out her backside as we made our way to the back of the restaurant. We took our seats across from each other in the booth and were left with an awkward silence after the hostess told us our waitress would be with us in a few moments.

Knowing it was probably already common knowledge, I asked her about her love of swimming and what motivated her to get into the sport. Midway through our conversation our waitress showed up.

Lauren seemed to the crème de la crème of their wait staff, most likely sent out to attract the famous Edward Cullen. After ordering a pint of Guinness and a corned beef on rye, I looked up to see Bella still floundering over the menu. Lauren smiled sweetly at me before sneering in Bella's direction.

This only flustered Bella more, so I slid my hand over the table and pushed her menu flat.

She looked up at me, an apology in her eyes, and I pointed to several items in quick succession, explaining what they were and why she might enjoy them. In the end, she chose bangers and mash with a plain diet coke.

Lauren snickered slightly at her drink choice before promising to get our order in quickly and to let her know, looking at me pointedly as she winked, if I needed anything. Her wink looked more like a small flinch or seizure brought on by the chemical fumes of her blond hair dye.

Bella started asking questions about Tanya and our relationship, asking how much of it was faked and how much was real. Her eyes didn't show any surprise as I told her that we had been physical, but I saw her flinch when I told her we had indeed had sex.

For some reason I felt very guilty and tried to backtrack and tell her that it meant nothing and it wasn't great; that it was just for show. That only seemed to make it worse; she flinched again before looking down and studying her diet coke as she drank.

Thankfully our food came, and the lull in conversation as we ate was both comfortable and awkward, neither one giving way to the other. We declined dessert, not wanting to stick around anymore. I knew Lauren was making Bella uncomfortable, and she was just another one of those women trying to throw themselves at me.

My hand hesitantly found the small of her back as she led me out of the restaurant and into the summer night. The sun was getting lower in the horizon and I turned us in the direction of the hotel.

Today with Bella had been amazing, all of it, even the parts I'd rather not think about. As we strolled along the streets, I took in all the other people who were out enjoying the evening. There were couples holding hands and looking so very much in love, and I glanced down at Bella's hand swinging lightly along her side, hoping someday I could have what they have.

There was a commotion behind us, and I could hear the speeding footsteps and yelling that went along with my being out in public. The paparazzi must have caught wind of my being out and about, and I was honestly surprised we hadn't been accosted much earlier. Turning my head to the side, I took in Bella's wide, terrified eyes and remembered she wasn't used to this.

The media left her alone, but she was with me now; she wasn't going to want a piece of her to filet among their varied news spreads as well.

Making a snap decision, I grabbed Bella's arm, pulling her into a run with me so fast that her bag whipped around and hit me in the ass. Thinking that we had finally outrun them, I pulled her into the first alley that wasn't creepy and gross. I pushed her up against the wall and rested my head in her hair along her neck as we both panted and tried to catch our breath.

She was trembling underneath me and I kicked myself mentally for taking off with her. She was probably terrified and thought I was a jackass.

Small squeals of laughter erupted from her and I lifted my head, confused at her outburst. Looking at her, she had broken out in hysterical giggles and a smile broke out across my face at the sight of her. The sun had gone down and I looked down at her, breathing hard and smiling up at me, and I don't know what came over me as I lowered my face dangerously close to hers as her laughter stopped and her face became serious.

She closed her eyes and I lowered my lips to hers as my eyes slid shut.

Our lips met and she tasted amazing, and that was the last thing that happened before flashing diverted our eyes and we realized we had been caught by no less than a small army of photographers and reporters.

Oh. Fuck.

* * *

OOOOOH They kissed! And got caught doing so on camera! What does this mean for Edward? What does this mean for Bella? What does this mean for Tanya? Up next is my bb PWTF. You know what to do!!!


	7. Oh god, am I a homewrecker?

**pwtf:** This Thanksgiving, I gave thanks for all our readers, and for you, my wonderful wife and co-writer!  
_LL:_ Well said boo, I too am thankful for all our readers, my wonderful beta and co-writer (you!) and family, friends and just being fortunate enough to have a roof over my head and food on the table!

**pwtf:** I have nothing witty to say.

_LL:_ Perhaps I can loosen that tongue for you ;)  
**pwtf:** We'd best post the chapter first, then...or it might be a while!

_LL:_ Yeah, we might not want an audience for this :) Let's do it!

Here is the amazing PWTF with her chapter, it's amazing as always!

Disclaimer: We do not own anything in the Twilight Universe, we have Smeyer to thank for that!

* * *

**BPOV**

Lying in bed yet again, this night seemed far more significant than the previous nights spent mulling things over. So much had changed over the past few hours that I didn't even know what to think anymore. My views had changed completely, done a complete 180 from my thoughts going into the meeting in the park.

I had contemplated standing Edward up, thinking he would deserve it. But in the end, my curiosity about Tanya won out. At four exactly I'd walked into the park, not even noticing him at first until he tapped me on the shoulder and scared the living daylights out of me.

Having mustered up my courage on the way to Hyde Park, I had immediately confronted him, demanding to know what he wanted to say about Tanya. Edward started tensely, but eventually the words began to spill out. I think he told me far more than he had originally intended.

His words completely shocked me. I had expected that all was not perfect in paradise, but discovering that they had only dated because of all the pressure of the media, threw me for a loop. With the amount of pressure it seemed Edward had been under, it didn't surprise me that he had caved. I couldn't very well judge him for something I knew so little about, I was so under photographed it was almost laughable. The intrusion on your life must be devastating.

After Edward had fallen asleep in my arms, I spent the time reassessing all my thoughts. What else was I completely misinformed about? Everything I'd heard about him was under question. I had thought he was a complete snob who thought of nothing but himself and how people saw him. This other side made me question all that I had heard about him through the news. I couldn't bring myself to hate him anymore. Even knowing that he hadn't absolved himself completely, I felt a need to comfort him and be there for him. If Tanya wasn't who she seemed to be in his life, who did he have? Thinking back to all the interviews and stories, I don't think I've ever heard anyone but Tanya mentioned as a support system. How horrible it must be to be all alone.

Though he had never truly loved Tanya, they still had a bond. Plus, though he may not feel for her, _she_ certainly still had feelings for _him_. And from what I'd seen of Tanya at various meets, she was not the sort of person I would want to cross. How would he get out of this situation? Surely she wouldn't let him go off amiably, but he needed to cut ties with her as soon as humanly possible. It was quite obvious that this was eating him up on the inside.

Shortly after I resolved myself to give Edward a chance, as long as he continued to show he was not, in fact, a snob, he began to stir in my arms.

He had seemed stunned to see me there, as if he thought I would leave. After what he told me, I wasn't sure if I _could_ leave. It would take a lot of convincing to force the helpful side of me to leave such a broken soul.

Then he had run away, believing I hated him. Though I had never given him a reason to think otherwise, it still hurt. I ran after him to catch up. Yup, definitely couldn't leave.

When he disproved my already weakened thoughts about why he hadn't gone to Beijing, any resistance to him was shattered. He looked down at me with an intense gaze, like he was trying to see deep into my soul. The intensity of that look combined with my realization that he was a decent person sent my thoughts all a-flutter. All I could think was that I didn't want our time together to be done.

Coming up with the first excuse I could think of, something lame about wanting dinner and needing a tour guide, I had been surprised when he actually agreed. What was I getting myself into? One look into my eyes and I felt twitter patted and I was supposed to spend the next hour or two eating and conversing with him? I was a goner for sure.

After a dinner where I had an, um, interesting experience with British food and we conversed some more, I felt like Edward and I were friends already. He amazed me once again; his attention never left me for the attractive waitress who obviously had eyes for him.

Then we had walked outside and been bombarded by the paparazzi. Running away from them, I understood even more how Edward could cave under them and date Tanya. I also realized why so many false stories were printed. These crazy people chasing us would jump at the opportunity to print any little story about this star.

We had seemed to lose them, and hid in a relatively clean alley.

That moment was when everything had changed. After catching my breath from the sprint and marveling at the fact that I hadn't tripped, I had broken out into hysterics. I wasn't sure why I laughed, but it was probably at the simple absurdity of it all.

Me, a barely-known swimmer, being chased down the streets of London with _the_ Edward Cullen by every member of the paparazzi. It almost made me laugh again from the comfort of my bed. Back here now in the comfort of the blankets and sheets swathing my body it was surreal, a dreamlike vivacity almost. I shook my head, nope Bella that was all real.

As my laughter had died down, however, the air became charged with an almost electric current. Edward's eyes had bored into mine once again, and I lost all coherent thought. All I knew was that I wanted to close the minimal space between me and this God, who for some miraculous reason seemed to want the same thing.

Our lips had touched in the most incredible kiss I'd ever felt. That brief instant knocked even the longest make-out sessions out of the park. Just as I was about to deepen the kiss, however, we were jerked apart by a sudden flash.

Fuck. The damn paparazzi again. Ruining my seemingly perfect moment. I hadn't consciously known I wanted to kiss Edward, but even now I would give anything for a repeat performance.

Once the shock wore off, Edward apparently decided not to comment and pulled me down the street again. We ran the short distance we had left to our hotel before dashing inside the doors where we would be safe from all the reporters. Breathing heavily against the closed doors of the hotel, we only spared each other a quick glance before silently agreeing to go our own ways.

Our night together had ended there, as much as I would've liked for it to continue. Seeming terrified at the prospect, Edward had regretfully left for his room with Tanya and an almost guaranteed interrogation over where he'd been.

Regretful for a different reason, I had headed up to my room and gotten in bed where I was now.

I hadn't even thought about the implications for Edward at the time of the kiss. At the moment I had been in too much of a daze to comprehend much, but now I realized what the media would imply with that kiss.

Bright and early tomorrow morning, the tabloids across the city would be flashing the picture of us kissing and accusing Edward of being a cheater. Sure it was true in the technical sense, but as he wasn't attached to Tanya in any emotional way, you can't even call it cheating, really.

Oh god what would they say about me? Homewrecker? Harlot? The other woman? I had never been in this situation. The largest interview I had ever given was for my local hometown paper when I found out I would be going to the Olympics. What would this mean for me? Was this the end of my privacy?

It was only one kiss, anyway. But the media being the media, it would be skewed completely out of proportion. I wasn't prepared for the backlash of this and unconsciously I sunk deeper into the mattress. There would be consequences for everyone involved: Edward, Tanya and myself. Edward was going to feel it the worst and Tanya would be made into the victim. For a split moment I almost felt bad for her; she had done nothing to warrant this deception. The moment was brief however as I remembered that I would most likely be the one she took this all out on.

This didn't mean much for myself, but I felt horrible for poor Edward. He had just let out his feelings for Tanya today and was just beginning to decide to end things with her. I was supposed to be there for him to help him ease things gradually, yet all I did was act as the catalyst speeding things up considerably.

The minute Tanya woke up and saw the tabloids, she would confront Edward about it. I groaned. I had made things so much more painful for him. Even in trying to help, I had simply made things worse.

I had a sinking feeling that Edward wouldn't get away easily. A confrontation with Tanya was definitely not high on my list of things to do in my life. Hopefully he wouldn't be hurt in some way. I couldn't live with myself if I caused him to not be able to compete to his fullest, even if he _was_ swimming against Jasper.

They were both my friends now. Either could win and I would be completely happy, though Alice might kill me for that thought.

It wouldn't do me any good to linger any longer on the topic of Edward's impending doom, so I turned my thoughts back to the electricity between us earlier today, resulting in the kiss.

This was easily one of the most eventful days of my life so far. Tense breakfast with Edward. Preliminary race. Meeting and confrontation in the park. Dinner. _Kiss_. It was too much to have possibly fit into one day, but somehow I had done it.

This morning I had still been so sure of the lie, so sure that I hated him. This afternoon had seen the contradiction of all my hatred. This evening saw a new friendship – and something else?

The kiss was nothing important, I reasoned with myself. I was a woman. He was an unbelievably gorgeous man with the most beautiful green eyes and a perfect voice, complete with a British accent. He was the perfect guy. And it had been a long time since the last time I had sex. Of course I would be physically attracted to him. It made perfect sense.

For me. He, however, had no reason to kiss me. I wasn't anything special, so why would he be attracted to me? We didn't know each other well enough yet for him to be attracted to my personality, though that wasn't anything special either. And he had Tanya to get him off, even if there wasn't any emotion behind it. So he couldn't be desperate for sex.

Then what was his reason for kissing me? It made no sense.

I sighed. Nothing in my life made any sense anymore. Today had turned things completely upside-down.

Returning my thoughts back to myself, I decided to stop focusing on the drama and worry about my race tomorrow. That was what I came here for, and Tanya would be even more determined to beat me after she found out about Edward's and my kiss.

I couldn't afford to let my concentration slip, even for one second, or she would take advantage and grab the gold. The instant I jumped in the pool, I had to concentrate on the race. I shouldn't even be distracted during my preparation.

If I lost to a better swimmer, then so be it, but if I lost simply because of being distracted, I could never live with myself.

With that thought in mind, I got out of bed and hopped into the shower. I forced myself not to imagine Edward in the shower with me, not to imagine him running his hands over my body and kissing me with all the passion we were denied earlier today.

I was definitely sexually depraved right now.

Somehow, I managed to focus my mind by concentrating completely on each part of showering. Lathering my hair with shampoo suddenly became a fascinating task, and I thought each movement through carefully with my entire attention.

There, much better.

After finishing my nighttime routine with much of the same concentration, I finally crawled into bed with some music. Passing on my typical classical music, I put on the loudest rock music on my ipod and turned the volume up until I could feel the beat reverberate throughout my entire body, instantly making it impossible to think.

My thoughts were clear of nothing but the music, and I slowly drifted off and the sound of the music became more distant.

In sleep, however, my mind was not so regimented, and without the music to distract me it was free to think of Edward and send me off into the fantasies I had refused to imagine while in the shower.

Needless to say, it was a very interesting night.

* * *

Well? What do you think? Comments? Let us know, tell PWTF how much you love her!


	8. London Bridge is Falling Down

**LL:** Shit's gonna hit the fan

_PWTF:_ Fan's gonna explode said shit

**LL:** Maybe we should get an umbrella for this shit storm

_PWTF:_ It'd have to be one big-ass umbrella

HEY CONKY, THE WORD OF THE DAY IS SHIT!

I'm up with Edward, I love him so, and all our readers! Thanks as always to my beautiful beta and boo, PWTF, you complete me!

Disclaimer: We own nothing of the Twilight Universe. Only each other, and you!

* * *

**EPOV**

As quietly as I could, I slid out of bed, searching the floor for my discarded sweatshirt. It was still dark thanks to the blackout curtains in our room, but the alarm glowed red: 7:35.

Early enough to hopefully avoid a crowd, but late enough that the papers would have been delivered to the gift shop downstairs.

Grabbing my key card out of my wallet, I slipped out the door unnoticed, wincing as Tanya turned her body, her arm searching for me even in her sleep.

The halls were an eerie calm, much like the calm before the storm, and I walked into the empty elevator, grinning as I passed Bella's floor.

That kiss last night was amazing; it had never felt like that with anyone before. Just kissing Bella far surpassed the most amazing sex I had experienced up until that point.

That kiss was also going to cost me. It was possibly the biggest mistake of my life, but in the afterglow and still feeling her warm lips pressed against mine, I didn't want to admit it.

There would be hell to pay with Tanya.

I doubt she would feel betrayed, but she wouldn't like the negative publicity, or the fact that they were less focused on her swimming and beauty than her wandering boyfriend. I'm pretty sure I've seen her angry, and it's not something I want a repeat performance of.

Walking into the gift shop, I greeted the security guard who was chatting up the cashier. The newsstand was like a glowing beacon to me this morning, and of course the first thing I saw was photo after photo of that amazing kiss, on display for the entire world to see.

There were a lot of them – it graced nearly every relevant news venue and some that weren't. Sighing, I grabbed one of each and took them to the register.

Both the cashier and the security guard gave me pathetic looks and didn't say a word as I checked out and carried my stacks of paper to the lobby. No way was I taking all this up to my room.

That would be telling Tanya myself and signing my death certificate. Some might say it would be better for her to hear it from me, but I knew otherwise.

If I walked up there and told her, she would demand details and an explanation of just what Bella meant to me. Reading the articles first, she would come to me and I could brush it off.

How would I brush it off though?

It was me who had her pinned up against the alley. Me who had my one hand tightly around her waist and the other wound up in her hair.

Not that you could see where the hand on her waist was, since there wasn't even a centimeter between our bodies. Maybe I could say I was thinking of Tanya, though I didn't know if that would work.

I would just have to play aloof with it. When she asked what was going on, it was just a kiss. It was after all just a kiss, there was no more to it, and there was no secret rendezvous.

No affair to speak of. There could be though. Did I want that? Did she want that? After that kiss it wasn't even a question. She had to know how much that kiss had affected me; I was pressed up against her.

Alone in the lobby, I took a seat on one of the couches that were beginning to be habit for me. Pulling the coffee table up to my knees, I laid the magazines and newspapers out like a spread.

We even managed to end up in a few tabloids, though those were the worst of the headlines.

**'_Olympic Champion Edward Cullen has Secret Affair with American Swimmer Isabella Swan'_**

Ugh, she hates the name Isabella. Seriously? That's what I choose to worry about right now? Looking over various US and UK papers, the headlines are much the same, implicating a deeper relationship but not going as far as to SAY we were having an affair.

Doesn't someone have to be married to be having an affair? Neither of us was married, that I knew of.

**'_Playboy Edward Cullen betrays longtime girlfriend Tanya Denali with her Olympic Competition Isabella Swan'_**

So I kiss one girl and now I'm a playboy?

This was the only article where they brought Tanya into the headline as well as the story. Though the topic of the article was of course stressful, it was well done and suggested that maybe Tanya and I were not as strong as we let on.

_**Could our favorite Olympic powerhouse couple be crumbling?**_ Well said, average reporter, well said.

Leaning back into the couch I sighed. I was going to have to face the music eventually. Pulling my phone out of my pocket, I turned it on and was greeted by the standard greeting my mom had put on two years ago when she got me the phone.

Seven voicemails and four text messages. The first four text messages were from my parents, the next two were from my agent and coach. The last two were from a random newspaper asking for comment; how did they even get my cell phone number?

Tanya's agent. Shit. That means Tanya knows. I looked through the text messages and it was more of the same.

My head hung in my hands and I very nearly broke out into tears as I thought of going back upstairs to deal with Tanya. Not that I hurt her, I didn't care if I hurt her and if that makes me an asshole I really don't care.

I wanted to cry because I didn't want any of this; I didn't want to have to deal with Tanya. To be able to kiss Bella anytime I want, that was what I wanted.

The newspapers were left on the table as I sluggishly made my way back to the elevators. Someone would enjoy the free papers, even if they were my end.

My eyes stayed closed the entire elevator ride, firstly because I didn't want to think of Bella as I passed her floor, but of course not wanting to think of Bella always leads to thinking of her, so that was a lost cause.

Secondly because of the quick moving time, I was no longer alone in the elevator and whether they had read the papers or not, I didn't want to meet anyone's gaze at this moment.

As I arrived at my floor, I jumped out as soon as there was room enough between the doors. Padding my way down the hallway I stopped in front of my door.

Easing the key card into the slot, the door opened of it's own accord and behind it was a bleary, red eyed Tanya, fisting a balled up tissue and glaring daggers at me.

Dropping my head, I walked past her into the room and took a seat on the corner of the bed. The door closed and after a moment of silence, I looked up to see Tanya sitting crossed legged on the armchair across from me, just staring at me.

"How could you do this to me Edward? Do you know what this means? You can't just go around kissing other girls!"

She stood, throwing her tissue into the wastebasket before grabbing another. She wheeled around, finger pointed at me before she dropped it silently.

"Why, Edward? Am I not enough for you? I've given you everything and more. Don't think I haven't noticed how distant you've become. Is it because of her? Do you want her instead?"

Dropping my head once again, I closed my eyes. I couldn't tell Tanya that it was a mistake, that she was all I wanted, but I also couldn't tell the truth. Sitting there, I let my silence be the answer.

"Oh god, its true isn't it; you want to be with her instead of me. What did I do wrong Edward, I love you. I would do anything for you."

Looking up at her, I was on the verge of tears, "I…think I love her. She gets me."

There I had said it.

"YOU LOVE HER? SHE GETS YOU? I thought I GOT you Edward, I LOVE YOU! Don't you love me?"

Looking straight in her eyes, I could see the desperation, it lined her entire face. There was hope and there was love and something I couldn't decipher, and it was too much. Looking away, I searched for something completely uninteresting.

The thermostat, fascinating, you have won my focus for the next thirty seconds. I could hear it in her voice, could hear the break of not only her voice but her heart as she whispered, "you don't do you; you don't love me."

Focusing intently on the thermostat I spoke, "Tanya we didn't get together because I fell in love with you, or because I was attracted and wanted to explore things. You know that."

It was at this point I chanced a glance her way. Her head was down, so I continued looking at her and said what I needed to say.

"You knew this, hell you were the one who said, 'hey we look good in pictures, let's date.' It was never more than that for me; it was never going to make me fall in love and was never going to make it mean more than it did on the surface, I'm sorry."

"I'm not going let you give up this easily Edward." She lifted her chin high and proud, the strength quickly coming back to her voice.

Ah this was the Tanya I knew. Nothing was ever this easy with her. "I have to try Edward, I can't just give up and you can't either. You could love me, if you really tried. I don't think you ever did. You didn't want it to be more so you never tried. You have to try, damn it. TRY."

Wringing my hands together, I didn't want to know what she had in store. I knew this face; it had 'planning' all over it.

"We are going to issue a press release stating you had an error in judgment and that I, the gracious love of you life, have forgiven this minor indiscretion. Bella Swan is nobody. You can't be in love with her, Edward, you don't even know her."

Shaking my head, I knew I was wrong, but I also knew that I would go along with this plan, because eventually she had to see that I did love Bella.

"I'm going to call my agent and have her issue the press release before my race, which you will attend and you will look every part the loving and supportive boyfriend. I am going to go take a shower and get ready for the day. I suggest you not go out in public again until I am with you.

**

* * *

**

The stadium seating at the pool was filling quickly, and I grimaced as Tanya headed back to the warm up pool. The same warm up pool Bella would be in right now, readying herself for the race.

Of course I was swarmed by the press, all wanting answers, and I gave the Tanya approved answers as best I could. I didn't have the heart to demonize Bella like Tanya had wanted me to.

I merely mentioned that Bella was a good friend, and we had an emotional moment that went too far.

Finding a seat on the floor with the other athletes and families, I noticed a small group building for Bella, fellow Olympians I was familiar with, and they all had varying expressions for me.

The little one Alice was smiling smugly at me, as though she knew how all this would end.

Both guys, Jasper, a fellow swimmer, and another larger guy who I knew was named Emmett were both shooting daggers and trying to accentuate how large their muscles were if I went the wrong direction with Bella. The blonde woman was merely sitting there filing her nails, looking extremely disinterested.

Alrighty then.

It was only a few minutes before the swimmers came out to the pool. They announced names as the swimmers took their place on the blocks.

Tanya smiled over at me and I smiled back, trying to be covert in turning my eyes over in Bella's direction. She looked good. I had seen her in her suit before, but that was before I had my hands on her and still wanted to put them even more places. My luck worked out in that I was right in front of Bella's friends, so when she looked over to them and smiled, I saw her gaze shift to my eyes, and no one else was any the wiser. She looked sad, guilty even. Looking away, her eyes dropped down and she looked ashamed. Shaking it off, she stretched her arms and took her mark with the other swimmers.

The shot rang out and the swimmers were in the water. With the clarity of the water, you could see the swimmers quite easily. I couldn't remember which lane Bella had been in, but I knew Tanya was in lane four, right in the middle.

At the last flip at the other end, it was obvious that Tanya was not in first. The swimmer in lane three reached the ledge about five-tenths of a second before Tanya did, and I knew a loss was not going to help her state of mind right now.

It would be my job to console her and be the good boyfriend after she took silver.

Silver was nothing to laugh at, but Tanya and I, well we've been there done that and we're gold kind of people.

I stood, ready to greet Tanya and console her, when the swimmer from lane three climbed out first. Bella.

Bella won first, and gold, against Tanya's silver.

How ironic, the first in my heart is the first of the race.

As was Tanya in second.

She smiled brightly for a moment, thinking I had come for her, but her face fell when Tanya laid her head on my shoulder. Bella looked away as Tanya took my face in her hand and kissed me.

It wasn't as gentle or passionate as my kiss with Bella had been, it was dry and a little like a dead fish.

Tanya turned to Bella with a bright smile and stuck her hand out.

"Congratulations, you earned the win." But not my boyfriend, her eyes said as Bella gently shook her hand and thanked her.

She afforded me one more shy glance as she was greeted by her coach and friends and celebrated her victory. This was big for her, and I knew it.

It was her first gold medal in the Olympics, and I wanted nothing more than to kiss her and swing her around in my arms, screaming to the world that she was the most amazing woman ever.

Instead we answered more questions from the press and followed her to the cool down pool.

Bella got out and headed to the locker room after only a moment or two of watching Tanya all over me, and I peeled myself from her, reminding her of the importance of a cool-down.

In all seriousness she agreed and stepped in while I found a place on the bench. It was killing me not being able to see Bella, well I could see her, but I wanted much, much more.

I wanted my arms around her and I wanted to feel her small hands against my body and I wanted to kiss her.

Oh yeah, I've got it bad.

There has to be some way to see her.

Maybe we can meet somewhere, but I can't even talk to her with Tanya around.

Standing up, I got Tanya's attention before motioning towards the men's bathroom. She nodded and I walked over the heavy wooden door, standing by the counter and emptying my pockets.

Paper, check; pen, check.

What do I write?

I've never planned a secret rendezvous before.

Ice cream stand in Hyde Park around 8 tonight.

There, that's simple enough. Poking my head out the door, there was no sign of Bella. I kept watching a few more minutes, until the woman's locker-room door opened. Bella came out, almost tripping over her bag and I ran out, joining her little pileup.

"Oh god, I'm so sorry, I…Edward?"

She looked horrorstricken as she backed away from me, looking around to see if Tanya had noticed the scuffle.

She hadn't.

I picked up her bag, folding the note around the strap and handed it to her. Shoving the note into her hand and then the bag, she looked up at me, a question in her eyes.

"Just do what the note says, please?" She nodded lightly before thanking me for her bag back and making her way towards the exit. Please come, I need to see you.

* * *

Leave us love, reveiws, chocolates, booze, whatever you like! Stay tuned for the next chapter from my lovely wifey!


	9. Smallest Battle Won

So here is the lovely and amazing PWTF with her chapter, and as always it is made of complete win. I do sincerely apologize as beta for taking so long to get this edited and back to her, I've had it for a week but was hospitalized right after Christmas, I'm all good now so hopefully my noodle with think something up in response to this awesome chapter of hers.

Unfortunately we do not own Twilight, that is all Smeyer!

Enjoy!

* * *

Standing on the tiny balcony outside of my hotel room, I felt a gentle breeze blow my hair behind me. I gazed down at the lights of London twinkling in the night sky.

It was a gorgeous sight, and it felt like an out-of-body experience. I still couldn't believe that I was actually here, in London, swimming for a gold medal. It was completely unreal.

I heard the sliding glass door open behind me, and a moment later felt two gentle hands stroke their way down my arms, from my shoulder to my hands before lacing our fingertips together. His presence simply added to the unreality of the entire situation.

It was too much to ask for, too perfect. I must have had an incredible stroke of luck, and I couldn't help but feel that this was all a dream, that one day I would wake up and be alone back home in the United States.

Turning my head slightly to look at him, my eyes were met with his emerald stare. We held that position for minutes before either of us broke the silence.

"Let's go inside," he murmured in his perfect voice. Not able to resist that voice and those eyes, I nodded in agreement.

Leading me inside, he curled up on the bed and pulled me into his lap. My head rested on his chest as we simply cuddled. It was the most peaceful feeling in the world, and I never wanted it to end.

However, I realized I hadn't showered yet, and I needed to do so before I went to bed so I wouldn't have to wake up extra early the next morning.

Gazing up into his eyes apologetically, I confessed, "I need to go get cleaned up before bed."

He smiled down at me, forgiving me instantly.

"Of course, I'll be right here waiting for you."

Groaning with regret, I pulled myself out of the bed and dragged my body to the bathroom. Turning on the water and peeling off my clothes, I couldn't help but think of _him_, lying in my bed, only separated from me by a single door.

The thought made me instantly aroused, and I stepped into the shower, trying to distract myself from the thoughts of what I _could_ be doing in that bed right now.

Just after I grabbed the shampoo, I thought I heard a faint sound in the bathroom. It had to be him.

"Edward?"

No reply.

This was starting to get a bit creepy. I never should have watched Psycho. I tensed up and clenched the shampoo bottle, ready to throw it at my attacker.

I couldn't bear to die in the shower, completely nude. Neither did I want any perverted cops inspecting my body in the investigation.

A hand reached around the shower curtain. I was about to throw the bottle when the hand pulled the cheap plastic all the way back, revealing Edward's smiling face.

"Mind if I join you?" I let out a giant sigh of relief and relaxed my pose.

"N-no," I managed to stutter out.

He noticed my shock and sudden relaxation and laughed out loud, stepping into the shower with me.

"What, were you going to incapacitate me with your shampoo?"

"Shut up," I moaned.

"You didn't answer when I called your name. I thought you were some creep coming to murder me."

He laughed again, even more exuberantly.

"I can still kick you out of the shower, you know."

The laughter stopped immediately, and he was suddenly intense.

"How about I help relieve some of that tension?" He asked, gently taking the shampoo bottle from my hand.

Squirting the liquid into his hand, he turned me around so my back was to him and began gently massaging my head. My tension relaxed instantly, and I leaned back into his body, feeling his already hardening member.

Deciding not to rush things, I remained in place and allowed Edward to finish washing and conditioning my hair. Staying torturously still, I felt my legs start to quiver from attempting to restrain myself. He was only touching my hair, yet I was already dripping.

_Please, hurry!_

I begged in my mind. Complying with my silent plea, he grabbed the bar of soap and worked it into a lather on his palms. He started out perfectly innocently, working his way from my neck, along my shoulders, and down my back.

My body couldn't take it anymore, and I let out a gentle whimper. I wanted more. I _needed_ more.

Deciding I'd been teased enough, he finally moved his hands to my breasts. He massaged them gently, the soap causing the sensation to feel extra smooth. I closed my eyes in relief, sighing contentedly.

He moved his fingers to my nipples, rolling them gently before squeezing. It still wasn't enough, and my hands moved of their own accord to his bronze locks, roughly pulling him in for a kiss. Our lips moved in perfect sync, rapidly increasing in passion as my tongue worked its way into his mouth.

One of his hands left my breast as he rinsed it quickly in the water before moving it down my body to my clit. Rolling my right nipple and stroking and pinching my clit alternately as our tongues danced, he brought me right to the edge.

I needed a release, and I reluctantly broke the kiss, moaning, "Edward, I need you inside me, now."

He shifted our positions so I was pressed up against the smooth shower wall before lifting me slightly. I placed my hands on his shoulders to help suspend myself, as my feet were barely touching the floor.

He thrust into me with one strong stroke, filling me perfectly and causing my arms to go completely limp and useless. With the only thing holding me up being Edward's arms, I was completely at his mercy.

His thrusting continued, each time filling me with the deepest contentment in the world. I tensed yet again, and could feel my inner coil pulled completely tight, ready to burst.

Showing near superhuman strength, he moved one arm down, now supporting me with just one arm. His now free arm returned to my clit, pinching it suddenly as he thrust in simultaneously.

The combination sent me over the edge as my body filled with ecstasy and I called out his name in a violent orgasm. After a couple more thrusts, I felt him tense up as he came deep inside of me.

When we had both come down from our highs, he gently lowered me down to the floor of the shower and pulled out of me, leaving me with a feeling of emptiness.

A few minutes later, having dried each other off, we lay in bed, curled up together. His arm, wrapped around me, pulled me close as he whispered in my ear.

"Sleep tight, my dear Bella."

"'Night," I managed to mumble, not sure if he even understood as I drifted off into a deep and peaceful sleep in his arms.

* * *

A sudden, loud knocking jerked me awake and I shot up in bed, ripping my headphones from my ears.

How disorienting. It felt like I was just going to sleep. So much for no distractions. My panties were soaked, and I felt a pang of loss upon realizing that I had been dreaming. We had barely even kissed in real life, but I couldn't help but want so much more.

I could mope about that later, however; right now I needed to answer the door.

"Coming!" I yelled, my voice still hoarse from sleep.

I dragged myself out of bed, leaving the blankets in a mess on the floor behind me. I ran and changed into new underwear quickly, hiding the wet ones in a drawer before heading to the door. Peeking through the tiny peephole, I noticed Alice bouncing up and down with Rose standing next to her with her arms crossed.

As I opened the door to let them in, I noticed what Rose was holding in her crossed arms; a British tabloid. Groaning out loud, I waited for the two of them to launch into me, asking for details and statements of truth. Honestly, they could be worse than the paparazzi themselves.

I didn't have to wait long. Rose strode over to the little desk in the corner of the room, slapping down the tabloid, cover-side up as Alice demanded, "Details. Now."

"One sec," I held up my finger. I needed to see what the tabloid said before I could refute it.

'_Olympic Champion Edward Cullen has Secret Affair with American Swimmer Isabella Swan'_

Ouch. That title was just _loaded_.

Secret affair?

I cringed.

"Okay, what do you want to know?"

"Everything," Rose replied. Everything, great. Lovely specifics there.

"What exactly happened yesterday? We want to hear your own version. Besides, when I saw you talking to him at the Opening Ceremonies, you looked positively livid, not like you wanted to kiss him." Thank you, Alice. Now that was something I could work with.

"I was completely wrong about him. I assumed and believed things like these tabloids here," I nodded towards the desk, "and yesterday I met the _real_ Edward Cullen." I continued, telling them all about our conversation, his issue with Tanya, and going to dinner. Finally, I told them about the paparazzi chasing us and the kiss.

"It just kinda happened, you know? We were so close in that little alley, and it was just for a second. But it was that one second the paparazzi caught up with us. And of course they blew it completely out of proportion."

Alice and Rose stared at me with their jaws dropped. It wasn't _that_ far-fetched, was it?

Alice was the first to recover.

"So…what do you feel for him now?"

I wasn't even sure of the answer to that question myself. We've called ourselves friends, and then kissed, and then that dream last night complicated things further. Who knew what to define our new relationship as?

"I'm not exactly sure. Obviously he's gorgeous," I replied, blushing bright red, "but I still barely know him. We've agreed to be friends though." I smiled at the thought. At least we could be friends if my dream couldn't come true.

Rose piped in again, "Thanks for clearing things up. But you, miss new friend to Edward Cullen, have been neglecting your old friends. We're taking you shopping."

If there was one thing worse than explaining yesterday to my two best friends, it was shopping. Alice had already perked up at the thought, and I dreaded being dragged around by her. At least we had to be done fairly early for my race and they couldn't wear me out.

I ran around the room, allowing Alice to choose my outfit to save myself the trouble of having to change from whatever I chose first, quickly making myself look decent enough to hit the streets of London for some much needed girl time.

There was an Underground station just down the street from our hotel, and we got our first experience riding the tube. Without too much trouble finding out how to get to our destination, we arrived at Covent Garden.

Despite my aversion to shopping, I actually enjoyed myself. There were some very talented and entertaining street performers that I watched for a bit. Plus the market was filled with every type of vendor imaginable. The lively atmosphere drew me in, and in no time at all it was time to head back to the hotel before the race.

After making our way back on the tube once again, I rested my legs for an hour until it was finally time to head to the pool. This was it, my first shot at the gold medal I had always dreamed of. I started to get jittery at the thought, before thinking calming thoughts and telling myself that nerves would not help the situation.

Finally it was time to head to the pool for the warm-up and then the final. I was filled with anticipation at the thought of seeing Edward again, but more than a little bit frightened over being within a 20-feet radius of Tanya.

Comforting myself with the thought that if she wanted to maintain her popularity she needed to behave herself in public, I once again grabbed my swim bag and headed to the pool.

Luckily I was only slightly harassed by reporters on the way; most of them must be bothering Edward and Tanya. I was just the barely known girl Edward supposedly cheated on Tanya with; their real interest lay in why he did it and how Tanya reacted to the news.

At last I made it to the pool, cautiously avoiding contact with anyone as I made my way into the locker room.

When I entered onto the spare pool deck, Leslie was waiting to talk to me. She was fairly soft-spoken for a coach, and after surviving Rose and Alice's interrogation earlier I knew I could handle a few words here.

"I'm assuming you've seen the tabloids?" I nodded regretfully.

"I'm not here to lecture you on your personal life as long as it doesn't get in the way of your swimming, okay? Leave your drama in the locker room and focus on the race. Remember everything I've taught you and you'll be all right. Don't psych yourself out. Swim like you know how. I have faith in you."

That was why Leslie was the perfect coach for me. She trusted me to take responsibility. She wasn't overly domineering, just a gentle, subtle prodding in the right direction, leaving me to take care of the rest. And I knew I could do it.

Jumping into the frigid water, I practiced the same mental regulation that I used in the shower last night. Focusing on each stroke, each kick, the pull of each muscle, I blocked every other thought from my head. No worries about Tanya being in the same pool as me, no cares about where Edward and I stood, just me and the water.

Just the way I liked it.

The time flew, and I finished my warm-up, dried off, and headed onto the main pool deck for my race. When we were called to the blocks, I stole a quick glance at my friends. By some miraculous stroke of luck, they were all free of events at the time of my first final. Having them all here cheering me on was a big confidence booster.

Noticing a flash of bronze hair behind them, I glanced upward slightly and locked eyes with Edward. I still felt horrible for what I must've put him through with Tanya with my momentary lapse in self-control. I didn't want to be _that woman_, the one that broke apart the "perfect couple."

Leslie's voice rang in my head again, reminding me to focus. Shaking my head and arms lightly, I placed my head in the mental zone I always used before a race. I went through my typical little block stretching routine in the couple seconds we had left before the start, making sure I was as loose and ready as possible.

Soon enough the announcer's voice rang over the loudspeaker, and I tensed at the edge of the block. The buzzer rang, and I was instantly off the block and into the water.

Some swimmers liked to spend the race comparing their position to the other swimmers; I, on the other hand, simply focused on making each stroke as strong and powerful as I could make it. I had no power over the other swimmers; I just swam as fast as I possibly could and hoped it was faster than the others.

After the final turn, I finally stole a glance left and right at my competition. To my utmost surprise, no one was directly in my line. I was winning! Refusing to let myself become too confident, I returned my focus to my strokes and sped down the final stretch.

Touching the wall at last, I pulled off my goggles and glanced at the results. My glance had stayed true; I had won my first gold medal!

Waves of pure joy washed over me as I pulled myself from the pool in triumph. All my years of training finally paid off in this one moment as I achieved my earliest and most important goal from my childhood.

I noticed Edward coming towards me from the stands, and I smiled emphatically at him. As a fellow swimmer, he knew exactly how much this meant, and I couldn't wait to share this joy with my new friend.

Just when he was about to reach me, however, he did something I did not expect. He stopped, and put his arm around Tanya.

My face fell, and I felt a sudden stabbing pain in my chest.

He was still with her.

Of course he wouldn't pick me over her; I wasn't anything interesting.

Still, I couldn't believe he would still be with her after our conversation yesterday.

No, there must be something more to this. I steeled myself, refusing to feel pain until I knew for sure that he had chosen her.

I refused to look at him as he kissed ­_her_, not me. Those same lips that had just made my heart flutter yesterday that were now kissing my complete opposite. Wanting nothing more than to turn away to head to the cool-down pool, I was kept in place by Tanya, sticking her hand out to me.

"Congratulations, you earned the win," her voice uttered. Taking her hand hesitantly, I looked into her eyes, seeing the hidden message plainly.

Maybe I won the race, but she intended to win Edward. Attempting to remain polite, I thanked her before turning away, noticing my friends all standing with Leslie, waiting to greet me.

Fighting to return to that moment of pure joy I felt right after the end of the race, I went and celebrated my victory. After the short medal ceremony and a couple words said to a reporter for NBC, I was finally able to escape to the locker room.

Reaching my peaceful state again in the cool-down, I felt my muscles slowly relax and loosen up again after the strain and exertion of the race. After completing my routine, I was happy to finally be able to head back to my hotel room and, as long as my friends let me, crash.

Changing back into my street clothes and feeling that delightfully warm sensation I get after drying off completely, I exited the locker room, not really focusing on my surroundings. My bag got caught up in my feet, and I stumbled forward, right into a hard body.

"Oh god, I'm so sorry, I…Edward?" Was he here to talk to me, or was he just waiting for Tanya? Looking around quickly to ensure she wasn't around to notice our proximity, I turned back to Edward, wanting nothing more than to talk to him but knowing that this was not the time or place.

Abruptly I felt a note shoved into my hand along with the strap to my bag, and I looked at Edward questioningly.

"Just do what the note says, please?" He pleaded. I nodded, agreeing to read it and thanked him for picking up my bag from the ground for me before heading out the door at last.

Pausing at a bench outside the pool complex, I sat down and took Edward's note from my hand.

_Ice cream stand in Hyde Park around 8 tonight._

It seemed we had similar desires. Glancing at my phone for the time, I noted that I had a few hours still before eight o'clock. Alice had her gymnastics all-around competition tomorrow, so my friends had left with my permission so that she could practice her routines one last time.

Carefully avoiding attracting attention yet again and once again realizing how serious a toll this must've taken on Edward, I made my way back to my home for the next couple weeks. Dumping my bag on the floor and setting an alarm for 7:15, I gratefully crawled into bed and fell into a deep and mercifully dreamless nap.

* * *

What'd ya think? Questions, comments, marriage proposals? Let us know!!


	10. Author's Note

Sorry for the fake out chapter guys, but I just wanted to let you all know that nominations have begun for the Twilight Awards. There is no registration necessary and it's super easy to nominate your favorite stories. You can find the link here.

www[dot]twilightawards[dot]this-paradise[dot]com

The authors of your favorite stories work hard doing what they do, so make sure to thank them by nominating!

LeechLover


	11. Moist and Buttery

NO time for witty banter this time bbs, PWTF is off having fun, goodtime adventures so this is a hit and run

I'm up to bat, I hope you like it, I'm always nervous when it's my turn. I hope I'm living up to your hopes and that of the story!

Any who I hope you enjoy and just remember we own nothing

* * *

Yesterday was probably my favorite day ever. After slipping Bella the note, the pool closed down to everyone but the athletes competing in the next competition. My mood was light and my confidence strong. I took first of course, and smiled brightly as Tanya latched herself onto my side as the cameras flashed.

She, of course, assumed that my smile was for her and she was winning this battle. Little did she know of my plans for the evening. Tanya, always an attention-whore would be cutting the ribbon this evening at a help center for children.

Not that she actually cared for the children; it was all about getting her face printed wherever possible.

No the real victory came when I walked out of the hotel in daylight, not having to hide a thing.

Ok maybe not quite daylight, but the sun hadn't set completely. God I love summer. As per usual, I saw her before she saw me, and I slowed my pace to enjoy what it was that I was seeing. She had taken advantage of the ice cream shop and held in her hand a cone, the flavor I couldn't tell you.

I was entranced by the swirl of her tongue around the ice cream and felt myself hardening at the thought of that tongue swirling around the tip of something else.

Calm down buddy, the last thing you want to do when you approach her is attack her and scare her away, that wouldn't be doing anyone any favors. Well maybe Tanya. Bella looked up as I strode to the table, taking a seat across from her.

She tilted her cone in my direction and I shook my head no, she had that taken care of, I would just watch. My eyes must have glazed over because she smirked at me and her already big brown eyes widened as she realized the nature of my stare. She stepped it up, taunting me with her tongue until I got frustrated and started to walk away.

She followed and we had a lengthy conversation about how she wanted me to leave Tanya and how I wanted the same and how much I wanted to kiss her.

That's where our conversation turned physical, finding a comfortable tree to lay under, hidden behind a row of hedges. Sure we had sticks and leaves in our hair when we emerged, but I was also the owner of a stupid grin and I had never been happier to make it to second base.

We were smarter this time though, I had sent her ahead of me back to the hotel, that way we didn't arrive together, but I was still able to watch and make sure she make it back unharmed. From the moment we ducked behind the bush to the moment I made it back to my own empty room, I had the oddest feeling of déjà vu, like I was being watched or something.

Today, if possible, would supersede yesterday in complete awesomeness. Tanya was swimming, but in an event Bella didn't swim in, and I was free for the day. Granted I had two races tomorrow, but that meant I only had a handful left before the games were over.

Over and the athletes would be leaving. Bella would be leaving. What would that mean for us? Would she stay here? Would I go there? I loved her; she couldn't just up and leave. Whoa, whoa; back it up. You love her? Where did that come from? If I was truly honest with myself, I would admit that I was falling in love with her. It was hard not to.

Around her I could be myself, my true self, and not the act I had built up for those who think they know me. I just want to be around her all the time, revolve around her like she's the sun. She does shine so brightly. God I'm a corny asshole. But it's true. I still couldn't fathom what she saw in me, what made me worthy of her precious time.

I didn't question it though, because to question might bring answers I don't want to hear.

This morning I woke to Tanya packing her race bag and smiling brightly at me, thinking things were turning around. Not wanting to clue her in otherwise, I smiled back, just as brightly. She came over to the bed and kissed me lightly on the lips. Guiltily, I returned it with as much gusto as I could, considering I had Bella on the brain.

It could be worse, I told myself; she never asks for sex on days where she had a race later on. But me, I'm live bait, no matter if I had to be a superhero by night.

Leaning over to the phone, I ordered myself a quick breakfast as Tanya packed up the last of her things and waved quietly before slipping out the door. I had really forgotten how nice and considerate she could be when I was playing along. I knew that wasn't really her though, just as she had probably realized that this wasn't really me.

Before we parted ways last night, Bella and I had made plans to meet fairly early this morning so I could take her somewhere special. She didn't know the destination, but I was taking her to my flat just outside the city. Sure it was a drive, but it wasn't as far as the small country cottage I kept tucked away from everyone.

Tanya, my coaches, no one knew about that country house except for me and my parents. I would take her there someday, but for now I would take her to my home, the place I spent most of the year, save the month or so I spent every year at the country house; holed up from everyone and effectively disappearing when I could.

Ever the athlete, I had an Olympic size swimming pool on the grounds. Just because I was in hiding didn't mean I didn't have to practice. That reason right there was the only reason I had the solitary scrap of privacy. I always came back in top form, better even because I was relaxed and well rested, so no one ever pried.

Room service came and I quickly inhaled three bagels, a plate of scrambled eggs, and a glass of milk and orange juice each. Hey I said it was quick, not that it was small. Jumping out of bed, I left the covers for housekeeping to fix and pulled out dresser drawers, until I came across what I was looking for.

Slipping on a pair of jeans I assumed were clean, I searched the closet for a decent shirt. I settled on a dark green button up and rolled the sleeves to my elbows. My mom had always said this shirt brought out the color in my eyes, and I was relying on that to be true.

The only question now was where are my keys? I had no reason here for a car, as there was a shuttle and honestly there wasn't any real reason to go anywhere during the duration of the games, but having the car here would be in my favor today. My flat wasn't far, but it wasn't some place you walked to.

My Aston Martin was my baby, my beauty, now only second to Bella I guess. I hadn't driven it in days and I was happy to get back behind its Italian leather steering wheel.

Valet! That's right, I had the valet park it when I arrived, now I just need the ticket. Digging through my drawers, I found where I had shoved it into a pair of folded socks. Tanya knew I had a car and she had been begging me to let her drive it.

No way in hell.

I slipped the ticket in my pocket and ran my fingers through my hair as I grabbed the key card and left the room.

The valet looked bored and I shook his hand as I handed him my ticket because he looked absolutely awed at the sight of such a famous athlete. He brought my car around and I hopped in and cruised the streets until I found what I was looking for.

Bella had told me to pick her up at a small bakery a few blocks from the hotel. She had passed it a few times and was nearly intoxicated by the smells emanating from the shop. We thought it would be a good idea if we mixed up our meeting places, for obvious reasons, and when I mentioned we would be leaving in the morning she groaned and said she'd need to have breakfast before she functioned.

Pulling up in front of the shop, I saw her inside at the counter giving an older, motherly-looking woman her order. She stepped to the side and I watched as she played with her fingers and stood there fidgeting when her order came up.

Rolling my window down, I looked her direction as she came out of the bakery and saw her face light up when she realized it was me. Opening the door, she slid into the seat and leaned her head back and sighed, breathing in more of the heavenly scent that was now wafting through my car.

"Croissant?" I laughed.

"No thank you, I already ate."

She nodded and clipped in her seat belt before reaching into the bag and pulling out the largest croissant I had ever seen. Battling the urge to laugh, I watched her take on the large pastry, the laugh dying in my throat as she started making moaning noises as she ate. It continued as she reached in and grabbed a second.

I kept my eyes glued to the road, leading to the highway, but I couldn't ignore those noises that were coming in my ears, vibrating down my body down to one spot that was getting painfully hard.

She sighed after the second croissant, and as I saw her hand reach for the bag again, I reached over her and stole the bag from her grip.

"Are you still hungry?"

"Well not really, I just can't resist them, they're so good."

She blushed as she admitted this.

"Maybe you should just wait a little bit then, I think we're both enjoying these croissants a bit much." She looked at me, confused, as she took the bag back, sealed it back up and set it in her lap.

"Edward what do you mean we? You didn't want any."

It was my turn to blush.

"I know that, but the noises you make when you're enjoying something make me think of those same noises you would make when you're enjoying…something…else." I looked at her pointedly, raising my eyebrows.

"Oh. OH!"

She started laughing, lighthearted and happy. When her laughter died down, she looked winded and red, but she had never looked more beautiful. She looked at me and said my name; her voice had dropped down a few octaves and had developed a sultry tone to it.

"Edward," she repeated, with a bat of her eyelashes.

"Do you like the noises I make?" I groaned at this.

"Yes, very much," I nodded vigorously and turned to her with a smile.

She bit her lip between her teeth and blushed a million shades of red in response.

"Soooo, where does Tanya think you are today?" She asked, obviously trying to change the subject.

"I told her my parents were coming into town today and wanted to go out for lunch, which explains my absence at her race and the use of my car, should she notice that I took it out of the valet garage." She nodded, "and where are we going?"

"I'm still not telling you, it's a surprise, but we should be there in about fifteen minutes so make yourself comfortable." She reached for the bag again, watching my reaction as she moved to open it. My eyes widened and my hands grabbed hers and pulled it away from the bag.

"Maybe you should wait until I'm not driving to have another of those, I'm not quite sure I could handle any more right now."

She smiled and turned to look out of the window and looked down to see her hand was still in mine. I moved to pull it away, and she turned her wrist minutely to interlock out fingers. Our entwined hands rested on the console, and I looked over to see a large smile on her face as she took in the view around her.

Almost exactly fifteen minutes later, I pulled around a corner and my flat came into view. There were only three to a building, and I owned the top. Turning into the driveway, we pulled around to the back and parked in the garage. I made it to her side before she could get the door and opened it for her, taking her hand and helping her out of the low seat.

She turned back and grabbed the bag of croissants, winking to me as she passed. I closed her door and activated the alarm and placed my hand on the small of her back, leading her out of the garage. With the remote, I closed the garage door and led her to the back door. Unlocking it, I held it open for her and directed her to the elevator.

Following closely behind her, I couldn't help but notice the naturally hypnotic sway of her hips, and I was still watching as they stilled and she pressed the up button. Watching as she turned towards the open door and held it out for me, I watched her wave her hand in front of my face.

"Edward, you okay?" Huh. Oh yeah. Dangerously hypnotic, addictive hips will be my end. I gave her a smile and joined her in the elevator car, pressing three and trying to look everywhere but her. Couldn't have an embarrassing repeat could we now.

The elevator doors slid open with a ding, and we stood about ten feet to the entrance of my loft. Suddenly getting nervous, my hand fumbled the keys, dropping them to the floor. Before I could reach them, Bella was bent over next to me, keys in hand, and she smiled as she gave them to me.

I stood up and put the key in the lock and prayed to whatever god would listen that I had thoroughly cleaned the place before I left for the Olympic Village.

The gods were good to me and shined down on me as I entered the flat. Not only was it clean, but since it had only been a few days, there wasn't even a light coating of dust across the surface yet. That always happened when I went away for a week to visit my parents.

I had to have a cleaning service come regularly when I left for the summer so I didn't come home to a one inch thick layer of dust covering the entire place. I stepped aside and let Bella through and watched her eyes as she took in the place that I called home. She walked through the entry way, running her fingers along the marble counter before making her way into the living room.

She turned in the room, taking in the surroundings before walking over the couch and pushing on it with her hand before smiling and plopping herself down on it. She toed off her shoes, looking a little embarrassed that she hadn't done so at the door, but at my nod she laid back on the couch and put her feet up.

Her eyes closed and her hands rested, folded lightly on her lap, bakery bag still clutched tightly.

"Make yourself at home, why don't you?" I said jokingly as the smile fell from her face. I made my way over to her as she opened her eyes, and her smile reappeared when she realized I was kidding. Holding my hand out to her, she looked at it for a moment before handing over the croissants.

Walking to the kitchen, I set them down on the counter and reached into the fridge for some drinks.

"Do you want anything to drink?"

"Yeah sure, what do you have?" Peeking over the break in the wall leading into the living room, I noticed she was still in the same position.

"Everything, and I do mean everything." Her smile grew as she called out, "if you have any grape pop that would be amazing. I haven't had one of those in so long." Happy I could give her something that made her smile, I pulled two of them out of the fridge, one for her and one for myself.

Making sure to grab the remote off the entertainment unit, I sat down with her on the couch, handing her a pop and turning on the TV. The air was up in the room, and I was afraid Bella would get chilly, so I took the chenille throw off the back of the couch and covered her with it before turning my attention back to the TV to find something to watch.

"What do you like to watch?" She sat and looked as if in deep thought before smiling sheepishly.

"Spongebob has always been my guilty pleasure, and I haven't been able to watch it lately." She looked down and I could tell she was embarrassed by her admission, so I decided to be honest.

"Me too, everyone else I know hates it, but it's like it's so bad it's good again." I could literally hear the screaming in her head as she popped up from her comfortable position on the couch.

"YES! Exactly, finally someone else who gets it! Oh my god, I lo..like you so much!"

I could see the truth in her eyes as she stuttered, but for her sake I ignored it. At least I knew that maybe there was a chance that she felt even a fraction for me as I felt for her.

"I really like you too," I said, before looking down and taking a drink of my pop. Looking over, she still hadn't returned to her reclined position and she held her hand out to me.

"Lay with me?" I nodded and situated myself behind her on the couch, my head up on my elbow looking down at her as she watched Spongebob.

During the commercial break, she reached to the table for her pop and after setting it down she turned into my side slightly and looked up at me. I could get lost in those eyes forever. As I stared, the eyes were getting closer to me and soon they closed as her lips reached mine.

She kissed me deeply, not turning away when she heard the theme song marking the start of a new episode. The gods must have also blessed me with an abundant supply of her favorite pop and a Spongebob marathon as well. I'm not sure what I did to deserve it, but I would do it again a million times over.

She pulled away, her eyes hooded and her lips swollen, "yummy, you taste delicious." I leaned back down, kissing her with all I had before shifting so that I was laying on top of her, careful not to put too much weight on her. This homebound bliss was sure to end if I crushed her.

Apparently she had other ideas though as her hands wrapped around my back and pulled me down on top of her. I was quickly losing control of the kiss as I felt her hands slide to the buttons of my shirt, undoing them quicker than I had ever thought humanly possible.

Tracing along her jaw and to her neck, I groaned into it as I felt her small, warm hands slide underneath my unbuttoned shirt to meet my overheated skin. Her hands on me weren't enough; I had to feel more of her against me.

She must have been reading my mind, because she pushed me up slightly to pull her shirt off, and I helped her pull because she was wedged between me and the couch. Once she was divested of her annoying shirt, she pushed mine from my shoulders, and before I could protest (only out of decency of course) she reached back and unclasped her bra with what seemed like only one finger.

Shut up on the logistics Edward, look at what's in front of you! Sure I had gotten to feel them under her shirt yesterday, but seeing was believing, and oh god did I believe. They were magnificent. I wanted to name them, date them, and marry them both.

Trying very hard to be a gentleman, I looked up to her face and brought my chest down to hers and my lips to her own. I couldn't escape the hiss and groan that escaped my mouth as our skin made contact, and I felt like I had been shocked. Bella must have felt it too because she started making what I have dubbed 'croissant noises.'

Trying to lighten the electrified and lustful force field around us, I took my lips from hers and looked down at her; I couldn't resist what fell out of my mouth next.

"Bella, you sound like you need a croissant." She looked up at me, her eyes wide, before she started giggling. It stopped as abruptly as it had started, and she threw her hips up against mine.

"No this is the sound of me enjoying something…else." With that she pulled my head back down to her lips, and I unconsciously started grinding my hips against her. I knew she could feel me hard against her by the whimpering sounds she was making. Making the circuit around her neck, I moved onto uncharted territory.

Her eyes were glazed over, and I knew if she could manage coherent thought she would clutch my head to her chest and force me to motorboat her. So with more elegance and grace than that, I lowered my mouth to her left breast, testing the waters and getting approval as she arched herself towards my mouth.

I made slow circles, deliberately staying away from where she wanted me. My other hand came to hold the weight of her right breast, and her hand found purchase in my hair, tugging on it to the point of pain, but the pain never came.

Between my hips, hands, and lips, which were finally tugging on her pebbled pink tips, I didn't notice as the hand that was not currently habituating in my hair slid down between our bodies and to the button of my jeans, which she popped off quickly and unnoticed.

What did finally catch my attention was the clicking of the zipper slowly coming down.

In that room filled with my groans, Bella's moans, and Spongebob and Patrick in the background, the clicking of the zipper was pounding in my ears, covering every other noise.

All motion ceased on my part as I felt her hand slip in my jeans and grab me through my boxers.

My body betrayed me as it twitched in her hand and my eyes rolled back into my head. My voice and brain however were still on my side. "Bella, I don't think that's a great idea right now." She held her hand firmly where it was and looked at me challengingly.

"Why not?"

Why not, I have like five reasons why not and a million reasons to keep going, so I knew I was going to gave to be the one to put a stop to this.

"One, we're making out on my couch and watching Spongebob. Two, if you keep doing that, I'm not going to be able to stop. Third, I don't want there to be any doubts on your part, I want to end things with Tanya so I can be free to be with you. In any way you want me I mean." I backtracked.

"I want it to be about more than just lust."

I looked down at her, knowing I had won, but she still looked so defeated.

"It's not that I don't want to, because I do. But…yeah." She nodded and laid her head down, sighing, and released her grip on me. I sat up so I could take myself away from the situation physically.

"One, yeah okay I get your point. Two, honestly? I didn't want you to stop. Three, I completely agree with you, I don't want you going back to Tanya afterwards." She looked down and I looked away, not able to face what I had almost let happen.

"And four, well, it is." She looked at me hopefully, "at least it is for me."

Turning to her, I nodded, "it is for me too, Bella." She smiled at this, and I knew what we had both said. We loved each other, but we both needed things to happen for us to be able to actually say it.

I was more determined than ever now, as I buttoned my jeans and pulled my shirt on and tried not to stare at the slight bouncing of her breasts as she moved around and redressed her top half. She reached her arms out to me, and I lay back down with her, and this time we watched Spongebob all the way through, though I spent my time figuring out how best to end things with Tanya.

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Well? What do you think?? Leave us some love! Next up is the lovely PWTF!


	12. Even Alice Ran Away

**LL: I bet they think we died!**_  
PWTF: Sometimes I wonder if I DID die...and the last few months were literal  
hell instead of metaphorical_**  
LL: I know it felt like I was dying. Stupid morning sickness.**_  
PWTF: Ouch yeah...but I think death counts as a good reason for an unannounced hiatus, right?_  
**LL: I sure hope soo....**

Disclaimer: We don't own so don't pwn!

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Edward dropped me off at the hotel mid-afternoon before he headed back to the pool to warm-up for his preliminary race – once again against Jasper – in the 100 meter freestyle. I would of course be attending the race, but to my friends and the rest of the world it would seem as if I was merely supporting Jasper. Only Edward and I knew the truth; and maybe Tanya.

After a morning of such high emotion and sensation, it felt nice to just relax for a bit before heading out again. This week of races, was proving to be one of the busiest and most intense times of my life, even keeping in mind all the demands of training leading up to the event.

Soon enough, however, it was time to head out yet again for the race. I met Alice, Rose, and Emmett in the lobby; we were all actually free to watch this race and were looking forward to spending time together while cheering on Jasper - and Edward, too in my case.

Despite having spent so much time with Edward the past couple days, Alice immediately pulled me into the conversation with ease. Before I knew it, we had made our way to the pool and were seated in the stands, continuing to chat in a cheerful manner. Alice's never-ending enthusiasm had successfully distracted me from all my worries. Tanya's hatred, the secrecy surrounding Edward and I, the media's interference; it all faded away in the innocent joy of the moment.

Too soon, however, the five-minute warning came over the loudspeaker, and Alice ended our conversation so she could focus on Jasper. I followed her gaze to Jasper, watching him peel off his warm-ups before quickly meeting Alice's gaze. The connection between the two of them was nearly palpable, and I looked away, not meaning to interrupt their silent conversation across the deck.

At that moment, I felt a small, light object hit the back of my head, and I turned around instinctively. There, just three rows behind me, was Tanya, glaring daggers at me. I whipped my head back to the front, but it was too late; my distraction was gone.

Without even seeking him out, my eyes found Edward's, and the intense feelings from earlier came flooding back, nearly overwhelming me with their power. It felt strange to feel so strongly about any one person, especially someone whom I had only truly known for just a couple days. Though having read about it and swooned over it multiple times in books and movies, I had never held much stock in love at first sight in reality. It just didn't happen.

Earlier, I had slipped up and nearly said, "I love you so much" to Edward. But I said the same thing to Alice and Rose all the time. Even Emmett and Jasper occasionally. They were like family to me, and I loved them as such. It must have been the same thing with Edward, right?

Yet I couldn't help the nagging voice in the back of my mind telling me that it was _completely_ different. Though we hadn't gone any farther than second base, this morning we had both admitted that what we were doing went beyond the physical.

Perhaps that had to be my decision, for now. Love was a precious thing to me, and I didn't want to rush into calling this love. However, what Edward and I had was definitely special. Ever since I had realized his true nature and personality I had felt a strong pull to him, a deep connection. I couldn't possibly explain it; I just had to feel it.

With that decision, the call came for the first heat to take their places, and Edward tore his gaze from mine. By some coincidence, Edward and Jasper had both drawn the first heat. They were placed right next to each other in lanes four and five, which definitely made it easier to pretend all my attention was on Jasper. Although, Alice and Rose probably knew, or at least suspected, otherwise.

The swimmers took their marks, then and then dove powerfully into the water on the buzzer. I couldn't help but gaze in awe at the muscles rippling on Edward's back. I may have seen swimmers' muscles before, but seeing Edward in that moment blew everything else away. In that moment, I couldn't blame Tanya for wanting Edward as arm candy. After all, who _wouldn't_ want him?

Before I knew it, the race was over. Having been staring at Edward for all fifty or so seconds, I hadn't noticed Jasper pull ahead until Alice began screaming in my ear. Glancing up at the leader board, there it was – Jasper Whitlock in first place, and a new world record, too.

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Alice's uncontrolled delight inspired her to take us all out for a celebratory dinner for Jasper's new record. As we sat around the table, chatting amiably, I couldn't help but feel relieved at the sheer normalcy of it all. I let my worries from earlier drift into the far, dusty corners of my mind, relaxing in my chair, with a celebratory beer in my hand. Allotting myself this one indulgence, I was jolted out of my momentary daze by Alice.

"So what were you doing with Edward Cullen all morning, Bella?"

I groaned, "Alice!"

"What?" She replied, blinking innocently. "I'm just curious." Looking at her pointedly, I cursed the little pixie and her infernal mastery at knowing exactly when there was some dramatic dish to be spilled.

I looked around the table at all of my friends. Like Alice, Rosalie was staring at me, eager to know more. Jasper sat in silence; I had always admired his easy-going ways, and I had never been more grateful in my life. And, as I expected, Emmett was making kissy-faces in my direction, causing a deep blush to redden my face and ears, before a wicked grin stretched across his wide face.

I vaguely noticed Alice saying something about a slumber party later, but my eyes were locked on Emmett's in fright. Such an expression on his face could only mean I was about to be embarrassed completely.

"Um…I have to…gotothebathroom," I rushed out, desperate to escape before my blush had time to spread to my toes.

Pressing down the "cold" knob on the sink in the bathroom, I splashed some water onto my face. ARGH!!! I let out a choking noise, trying to keep from screaming. The water was boiling hot. Was someone _trying_ to kill me? 'Cause they were doing a damn fine job of it.

I shifted to my left, trying the other sink. Relieved to find the cold was working in this one, I doused my burning face, both literally and figuratively.

As I pushed the door open, bracing myself to face Emmett, I heard a yelp as the door made contact with someone.

"Oh! I'm so sorry. I have terrible luck…bad things just seem to…OH!" I let out in surprise as I noticed that the person I had smacked was Edward. He let out a gentle laugh as he swept me into a hug.

"Ah, Bella."

"Wh-what're you doing here?" And more importantly, why was he hugging me in public where anyone could see? And wouldn't Tanya be with him?

"BELLA!!!" I whipped my head towards the screeching call. Alice.

"Bella, you have to come back to the table, now! Tanya just went into that bathroom. Didn't you see her?"

"She can't be in there. I just walked out, and there was no one in when I entered…" I trailed off. Oh, shit! Maybe she walked in sometime during my little stunt with the sinks.

I became acutely aware of the fact that I was embracing Edward not ten feet from Tanya, only separated by a thin, closed door. As I attempted to disentangle my arms from his strong, swimmer grip, Alice continued, "Come back with me Bella, before she walks…." Her voice trailed off, confusing me.

"Alice?"

"Um…I'm just gonna leave now…." Alice turned her back and fled. The Alice I knew didn't run from _anything_. Why the hell was she running now?

Suddenly I heard the bathroom door shut, and I closed my eyes in fear.

In my head I began a countdown until the bomb would go off.

_3…2…1…_

Silence.

This shocked me so much my eyes shot open as I wondered if my initial thought was wrong.

Nope. Tanya was glaring at me, her brilliant eyes only a foot from mine.

"I'm sorry," stumbled from my lips, merely a whisper. My feet were rooted to the spot, though my mind screamed at me to run after Alice. People always talked about "fight or flight," but I couldn't seem to do either.

Tanya's picture-perfect, poster-girl lips opened, and then closed again. It appeared she was undecided about how to kill me. I just prayed it would be over quickly; I didn't want to linger in agony, send me straight to Heaven, or whatever came after death.

Her mouth opened again, and I winced internally. But instead of lighting into me, she turned to Edward.

"Fine!" She about screamed. I winced again, this time not worried about my safety but the attention that was not most likely shifting focus to us.

"You want to throw everything away for some plain American," she spat the word like it was the worst curse in the English language. "Go ahead. I loved you. I forgave you. But I'm done trying. Do whatever you want. We're through…and I'm keeping the flat!"

She straightened up, attempting to stride away briskly, but Edward caught her arm.

"Bella's anything but plain, and besides, our _relationship_," it was Edward's turn to scorn, "meant far more to you than it did to me, and you know it."

Before he could let out another word, Tanya huffed proudly and stalked away, her thousand-dollar stiletto heels clacking her departure.

"Well that was interesting." I was still stunned by the brief exchange. It had lasted less than a minute but left my mind reeling.

"I don't like it," replied Edward. "It's not like her. Tanya doesn't just give up. I hate to sound cliché, but she's planning something. I know it."

My sudden outburst of laughter surprised me. While worried right along with him, the line was so cheesy and my relief so great that I cracked up. Soon Edward joined me, and we were clutching each other, trying to keep standing despite the urge to double over.

At the exact same instant, our laughter ceased as we realized how on top of each other we were – in public. Evil plot or not, Tanya could no longer keep us from speaking – or touching – without fear of the paparazzi, who, despite not swarming us this instant, would assuredly be displaying footage of this scene across the news tomorrow. Sometimes I wondered how they did it.

I shook this thought from my head, focusing on the perfect man in my arms. Having clearly realized the same new freedom, his gaze darkened as he leaned in to press his mouth to mine.

I was instantly transported back to this afternoon's make-out/groping session. The restaurant disappeared from my senses as I became consumed by the feel of Edward's tongue pleading entrance to my mouth. Our bodies were pressed tightly together, and it seemed I felt every inch of him, yet it wasn't nearly enough.

After seeing enough fireworks behind my eyelids that I wondered if it was possible to be blinded, I heard someone clear their throat pointedly and felt Edward gently pull away. Desperately working to catch my breath, I let out a pant of relief that it was only Rose and Alice and not some unknown restaurant patron.

It was clearly Rose who had broken us apart. "If you two are done now, the rest of us have finished eating and are gonna head back to the hotel."

Struggling to come up with a witty comeback, my brain was still too flustered to string enough words together into a coherent sentence.

"Come on Rose," Alice chided. "But really Bella, I've seen so little of you. We can order room service and have our own little slumber party in London!"

Returning my gaze to Edward, I pleaded with my eyes for him to save me from the torture. I loved my friends, but they could be a bit overwhelming.

"As much as I'd love to keep you all to myself, we spent all morning together, so I have to give you up now." So much for my savior.

"Yay!" Alice squealed before grabbing my hand, attempting to dance-pull me away.

"Will I see you tomorrow?" I asked hopefully.

"Of course. It's the semifinals tomorrow, remember?"

Duh! The evening had been so eventful that I'd already forgotten the afternoon's race.

"Tomorrow then," I called back to him before Alice's tugging increased and we escaped the restaurant into the fresh – albeit moist – night air.

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A/N: I'd just like to mention a new set of awards from Gustariana and HMonster4, The Indie Twific Awards. These awards are different from the rest in that they are intended to bring attention and recognition to underappreciated stories. Qualifying stories have an average of less than 30 reviews per chapter if not completed, or less than 1000 reviews if complete.

This story does qualify, but more than ourselves, there are so many awesome stories out there that deserve far more readership than they receive. So go nominate your favorites!

Nominations open next week I believe. Check out the website at theindietwificawards (dot) com

They also have a thread on the Twilighted forums, in the Twilighted Lounge. Check them out!

~pwtf and LeechLover


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